


Point of No Return

by niteryde



Category: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Dark, F/M, Gritty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:41:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 23
Words: 182,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27414415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/niteryde/pseuds/niteryde
Summary: Trunks was going back in time to warn the others about the androids, but instead ended up in a time when Vegeta was Frieza's most ruthless soldier... can he keep his power and identity a secret when he sees the brutality of his father's past?
Relationships: Future Trunks Briefs & Vegeta
Comments: 95
Kudos: 112





	1. Too Far Back

Trunks eyed his sword carefully, slowly turning it over in front of him, a solemn expression on his face. Beyond the sword, out the window of the remnants of Capsule Corporation, he could see smoke rising in the distance. His eyes focused on the smoke and then darkened at the visual reminder of the destruction the androids were capable of. He put the sword back in his holster and slung it over his shoulder, his blue eyes focused as he looked out the window a moment longer.

It was time. Time for him to go back into the past and set everything right. He briefly contemplated his mission, the weight of the heart virus antidote feeling like a brick in his chest. He needed Goku's help if he was to end the madness. He wasn't sure if Goku would make such a large difference, and if he was being honest, he was still a bit skeptical. His mother though believed so much in the warrior that Trunks had to believe as well.

They had nothing left to lose.

Bulma took the cap off the black sharpie in her hand, before scribbling on the metal of the time machine she had built for her son. She hadn't finished writing when her teenage son came up behind her. The lavender-haired young man tilted his head to the side a little as he peered over his mother.

"Hope, huh?" he asked. She smiled, putting an extra exclamation point for emphasis after the word before putting the cap back on the sharpie.

"That's what keeps us going," she said, turning to face her son. He gave her a smirk, and she noted how much he resembled Vegeta when he did that. She smiled nostalgically. "Now, son, do you have everything?"

"Yeah, I have everything I'll need," Trunks said, opening his leather Capsule Corp jacket to show his mother the capsules that were tucked on the inside.

"And you have the antidote for Goku?" she asked, her blue eyes concerned.

"Yep, got that too," Trunks replied easily, giving his mother a reassuring smile. "It'll be fine, Mom. It'll be exciting actually," Trunks' eyes gleamed a little, and Bulma laughed, recognizing that look.

"That's your Saiyan side talking all right," she said with a chuckle as she shook her head.

"It's true though. I'll be able to see Gohan again, and meet his father who I've heard so much about. And I'll even be able to see my own father," he said, not able to keep the smile from growing on his face. Bulma sighed and gave her son a knowing look, making Trunks laugh. "I know, I know, you've already told me that he wasn't exactly the… friendliest guy around."

"I just don't want you to be disappointed, Trunks…" Bulma said hesitantly, trying to find the words to say what she was feeling, "Vegeta wasn't a bad person. Proud, arrogant, sure, but he was a hard man to really know and understand. He never showed me any affection at all Trunks, and I just don't want you meeting him with these huge expectations that he won't live up to…"

"I know, I won't set my expectations high, but it's still going to be so awesome to actually see him," Trunks said excitedly, brushing his lavender hair out of his eyes.

"Now Trunks," Bulma said, her voice taking on that motherly tone as she placed her hands on her hips. "You're not going back in time to socialize with Vegeta, you know."

"I know," he said, his face turning solemn again. He walked past his mother up to the time machine and looked up at it, the machine as daunting as his task. Slowly, he reached out and let one hand rest on the word his mother had just written on the side of the machine.

_Hope._

"I wish you would give me another few weeks to run more tests on this thing," Bulma sighed behind him. He turned to face her, giving her a small smile.

"Mom, you're a genius, I'm sure it'll be fine," he told her reassuringly. She nodded, giving him a strained smile before looking away. She unconsciously wrapped her arms around herself, hating the feeling of dread over being away from her son for so long. She was startled when she felt her son wrap his arms around her, as if reading her mind. "I'll be fine," he told her with complete sincerity.

She sighed and hugged him back tightly. He let her hug him as long as she needed. "You're all I have left, Trunks," she told him, pulling away from their embrace. She took his face in her hands, simply gazing at the man her son was becoming. "You better come back in one piece, do you hear me?" she told him, and he smirked.

"I'll be back in one piece, Mom, I promise."

"Good," she told him, letting him go. She gave him a wink. "You stay out of trouble, Trunks."

"You too," he said, his tone light-hearted as he turned back to the time machine. In one swift and easy jump, he was in the machine. He took a seat and looked down at the blue-haired woman below him.

"You know me, I'll find something to keep me entertained," she called up to him. He laughed at that.

"That's what I'm afraid of," he joked, pressing a button on the control panel. The glass top of the time machine whirred and lowered itself around him, closing with a click as the machine came to life. He pressed another button, and immediately the machine began to rumble underneath him.

Smoke rose out from underneath the yellow time machine as it slowly elevated into the air. Bulma watched anxiously, a nervous smile on her face as she slowly craned her neck back to look up at her son. They made eye contact, and he gave her a small but confident wave.

There was a small flash of light, and then Trunks was gone.

* * *

Trunks blinked, his eyes focusing as the white light that had engulfed the time machine finally disappeared. It hadn't taken more than a few seconds, and he was somewhat surprised by that. He hadn't known what to expect, since he had never used the time machine before, so he laughed inwardly at himself for finding anything surprising at all.

He pressed the button the triggered the release mechanism to his time machine, and the glass top whirred to life and slid up. He hopped out of the time machine, landing gracefully on his feet. He looked around curiously, before pressing a button on the side of the time machine to put it back into its capsule. He picked up the capsule and put it back into his jacket with the other capsules. His mother had given him everything he would need to stay here as long as he thought he needed to.

Trunks wasn't planning on staying long though. He just needed to speak to Goku and give him the antidote he would need so he could live long enough to help them against the androids. He did not want to leave Bulma alone for longer than that, not with the androids constantly hunting them down. Scowling, the teenager looked around him, wondering where he had landed. The coordinates had him landing a few miles away from Goku's home. He had never seen Goku's home, nor would he be reasonably expected to recognize the area twenty years back in the past.

But somehow, this didn't seem right to him.

The area he had landed in was barren, something like stone or concrete underneath him. There were minimal bushes, more like shrubs, and they looked like they were dying. It was nighttime, and Trunks' scowl deepened as a feeling of unease crept up through him. Somehow, this didn't feel right at all. The darkness and emptiness of the place made even his destruction-filled future look bright. Trunks shot up into the sky and took off, trying his best to locate some type of power that would let him know where the other Z fighters were.

A few minutes later of flying over nothing more than barren land, Trunks began to grow concerned. He couldn't pick up any power signal from the fighters that he was anticipating encountering. Even though Gohan was technically a child in this timeline, he doubted that Gohan's energy level was so low that he couldn't detect it. Gohan's energy level was the only one Trunks had ever learned to read and sense, and he would recognize that energy level no matter what year it was.

_Oh no,_ Trunks thought, horrified as a thought suddenly struck him. _What if I'm too late and they're all gone?_

_No… no, it can't be_ , Trunks thought, arguing with himself as he flew faster though the air. _Gohan survived the androids before, he would still be alive…_

Suddenly, Trunks saw lights up ahead. They were dim, but he could vaguely make out buildings. He grinned and went even faster. There were people up there, he knew it. He would feel much more at ease when he saw them.

The closer and closer he came to the lights and buildings though, the more and more his grin slowly disappeared, replaced with a look of concern as his eyebrows furrowed together. The look of concern grew into a look of shock as he suddenly stopped flying.

He hovered in the air, gazing down at the panic and hysteria that was engulfing the streets. Everyone was running and screaming in sheer terror, with people running into each other and horrified eyes filled with pure fear. Trunks was also horrified as he watched the scene below him, his eyes also filled with terror.

These… people… weren't _human_.

They were average-sized creatures, their skin appearing hard, scaly, and deep purple. Their eyes were large and yellow, and they had no hands, just claws. They walked upright like humans though, and at the moment, seemed to express human emotion in their eyes. They were aliens, they had to be.

Trunks clenched his fists, understanding but not wanting to understand.

_Where the hell am I?_

Slowly, he descended, his approach not even registering in the mass hysteria that was engulfing the city. The aliens were screaming in a strange language that he didn't understand. Trunks landed and quickly ran around the corner of a building. He found a deserted alley and immediately retrieved the capsule with his time machine. He clicked it and threw it on the ground.

And nothing happened.

Trunks felt his stomach drop as he retrieved the capsule from the ground, before clicking it and throwing it again. And again, the capsule just lay there. The teenager just stared at it, his hands beginning to shake.

He had no idea where he was, had no idea even what _year_ it was, and now had no idea if he could even go home.

He slowly picked up the capsule, fighting his impulsive reaction to throw and destroy the capsule. No, he would have to keep it, find somewhere quiet, and try his best to repair it. As he put the capsule away, he was regretting not having listened more to his mother when she had tried to explain the design of her inventions to him.

Just then, Trunks was sent sprawling onto the ground as someone ran into him from behind. He was on his feet immediately, his sword drawn in less than a second as he gazed at the offender.

"Who are you?" Trunks demanded, glaring at the alien in front of him. It looked smaller than the others, like a child. The alien was in a sitting position on the ground as it gazed up at Trunks with pure terror. Trunks saw the terror, and felt a pang of recognition. Usually he was on the other side, that look in his own eyes.

Slowly, he offered a smile and put his sword back in its holster. The alien backed up a little, clearly afraid of him. Trunks knelt down and his smile grew.

"Hey, I won't hurt you," he said sincerely. The creature's look went from terrified to confused. "Can you understand me?" Trunks asked as the creature slowly stood. The alien was only half as tall as Trunks.

"Ila yen kai trinkalei," the alien said, panic in its voice as it looked at Trunks with pleading in its eyes. Trunks just shook his head, trying to communicate that he didn't understand.

Suddenly, the alien was up close to Trunks, grabbing fistfuls of the teenager's jacket. "Whoa," Trunks said as the alien's eyes grew large with obvious fear.

"Ila yen saiyan!"

Trunks tilted his head curiously, recognition dawning in his eyes, "Did you just say _Saiyan_?"

The alien's eyes grew even more, and before Trunks could ask anything, the alien took off running, dragging Trunks behind him. "Hey, wait a minute!" Trunks cried out, knowing he could stop the alien but not wanting to. He wanted answers. "I'm a Sai-"

The alien stopped running suddenly, pulling Trunks down quickly behind a piece of fallen concrete and covering the teenager's mouth with a clawed purple hand. The words in Trunks' mouth died anyways as they both peered over the concrete. The sight that greeted him sent chills up his back.

Not even fifty feet away, he saw a ki blast rip through the streets of this strange civilization he was in. Horrified screams filled the air and painfully lingered, tortured wail followed by tortured wail. There was smoke rising, and in the middle stood a tall man with long black hair that went down almost the entire length of his back. The man was wearing a metallic contraption that covered his left ear, with a red piece of glass that stretched over to cover his left eye.

The man turned with a smirk, and Trunks and the alien child both lowered their heads behind the piece of concrete. A ki blast sailed right over their heads and slammed into a nearby building, immediately engulfing it in flames. Trunks watched the devastation in horror, conflicted as indecision tore through him. Should he step in and end this madness?

He had seen the man's armor, had seen the man's tail wrapped around his waist securely. He knew he was a Saiyan. That type of energy could only come from a Saiyan. But all of the Saiyans were gone that he knew of. The only ones who had survived were Goku and his father. They were the only pure-blooded Saiyans left twenty years into the past.

Trunks felt his eyes widen. How far back in time had he actually traveled?

"Saiyan," the alien whispered, motioning back towards the man. Trunks looked at the alien next to him in a daze before feeling another explosion rock the area. Trunks covered his ears, grimacing as he tried to shield himself from debris falling near them.

Anger suddenly flared through him. He hadn't left his world of death and destruction asking to enter another one, and he was struggling to contain the fury he felt running through his veins. But his mother had warned him, that he wasn't to change anything except giving Goku the antidote, because the smallest change could have huge ramifications in the future. Things could change wildly, and he had promised his mother…

Trunks felt another explosion rock a nearby building, and he clenched his teeth together, his body trembling as he ached to intervene. He heard the man laugh loudly, and he couldn't imaging what kind of monster he was to laugh at this. This civilization was helpless, and he had destroyed them and then done nothing but laugh at their pain and deaths.

"Way to be selfish, Raditz," Trunks heard a deep, gruff voice say in amusement. His eyes widened when he realized they were speaking his language. This voice was closer to him, less than ten feet away. "You didn't even let me have any fun with them before you went and killed them all."

The other man snickered. "Sorry Nappa, but you have to jump in a lot sooner than _that_ if you want to have some fun too. I just couldn't help myself."

The first man laughed, "Well, I'm sure I can find some alien freak left to have fun with around here."

Trunks and the alien child remained sitting with their backs pressed up against the slab of concrete, and Trunks didn't dare breathe. He didn't know who these Saiyans were, but he was fairly confident that he could destroy them easily and single-handedly. But he had no idea what that might do to the timeline he had always known. He just wanted them to leave, so he could figure out how to get away from there and either go back home, or go back to the timeline and planet he was supposed to have gone to.

Just then, there was a low shuffling sound. Trunks' eyes narrowed as he stared straight ahead, where out of the smoking and burning wreckage, what looked to be a female alien of around his height stumbled out. The alien looked at Trunks and the child alien sitting next to him and gave out a loud cry.

The child alien returned the cry, before rushing forward towards her. "No!" Trunks hissed. He turned around enough to peer over the concrete at the Saiyans behind him, and he saw that the one closest to him was a burly, bald, large and menacing man. The bald man turned and saw the aliens, and raised an eyebrow in amusement. Neither of the Saiyans had noticed Trunks there, but that was about to change if they tried to do what he thought they were going to do.

Trunks growled as the bald man laughed and raised his hand towards the aliens, preparing a ki blast. "Hey, look Raditz, free target practice."

"Hold that thought, Nappa," Raditz said.

Trunks froze when he heard the other man speak. His hand had already been on his sword, and he had been prepared to leap up and make himself known. He had seen enough destruction, and seeing the child alien and what looked to be its mother slaughtered before his eyes would be too much for him to take. He had been about to jump out and block the Saiyan's attack, but now he sat back against the piece of concrete, his body tense.

"What is it?" Nappa demanded with a sigh, looking over his shoulder at the younger Saiyan. Raditz had a frown on his face as he stared at the aliens that Nappa had been ready to disintegrate.

"My scouter briefly picked up something," Raditz said, and Nappa scoffed at the ridiculous remark. Trunks closed his eyes, squeezing them shut. How could he have forgotten? Those contraptions on both of their faces were scouters that could read power levels. He had never needed one because Gohan had trained him to pick them up on his own, using just his senses. Even then, it had proven of little value since he could not pick up the power or energy levels of the androids. Now they had picked up a flicker of his power level, and he cursed to himself. He _had_ to keep it suppressed and not let his emotions get the best of him.

"Well, maybe you should get a new scouter because mine didn't go off," Nappa remarked, his tone bored as he rolled his eyes. "Can I destroy them now, or do you have another pointless observation you want to share with me?"

Trunks braced himself for action as Raditz laughed, "I'm not Vegeta, you don't take orders from me."

Trunks felt his blood run cold and his heart fall.

Vegeta, his father, _Vegeta_? The man his mother had fallen in love with, that same man?

_He… was behind this?_

The lavender haired teenager's head began to swim as he suddenly struggled to breathe. This wasn't happening, there must have been some mistake. Maybe he had been knocked unconscious while taking the trip in the time machine and this was all some nightmare.

Suddenly, there was an explosion in the distance. Nappa and Raditz looked at each other and smirked. Nappa lowered his hand, cracking his neck.

"All right! Vegeta's getting the fireworks started in the palace!" he laughed as he walked back over to where Raditz was standing.

"What about your little friends?" Raditz asked with a sneer. Nappa waved them off without even a glance back.

"They'll get theirs when we blow this planet to bits," Nappa laughed. Trunks clenched his teeth together as he watched the aliens try to walk away. The mother was wounded, and his stomach churned at the sight of the dead bodies they were trying to maneuver around. His heart ached for this strange alien race that was being massacred right in front of him. "Let's go, we don't want to miss the show. Vegeta mentioned he wanted to have some kind of tournament, and we don't want to miss that."

"That will be fun, even though there's hardly anyone worth fighting on this planet," Raditz said with a shrug.

"Hey you never know, someone might actually last more than ten seconds," Nappa laughed as the two men took to the skies.

Trunks let out a breath once he felt their energy levels fading. He closed his eyes and rested his head back against the concrete he was sitting against. The smell of rotten flesh reached his nose, and he fought the revulsion in his body at the sense. Anguished cries slowly started to rise around him, and Trunks slowly opened his eyes to see the destruction.

Slowly, he got up to his feet and turned around to survey the damage, feeling a horrible sense of déjà vu rise through him. The fire, the destruction… he thought he would have momentary peace from this by going to the past, but instead, he had fallen knee-deep into it once again.

And his father was behind it.

He suppressed the feelings that raged through him at that fact. He had known his father had had a painful past, but his mother knew next to nothing about it except that he had been under the command of Frieza since he was a boy. His father had been private and hadn't shared the details of his past with her, which had annoyed Trunks when he was younger. How could he learn about his father when his own mother hardly knew the secrets of his life?

But now… now, he was starting to understand.

He walked slowly off to the side, away from the carnage, away from it all. Dazed, his hands shaking ever so slightly, he reached into his jacket for the capsule to the time machine. He tried it again, and nothing happened.

Again, and nothing.

Again, and nothing.

Again, and nothing.

Trunks picked up the capsule. He had no time to properly fix it. He had no tools here, but most importantly, he had no time. If he heard the Saiyans correctly, they were planning on destroying the planet. And probably soon at that. Trunks gripped the capsule tightly.

"What do I do," he mumbled, his lavender hair falling into his blue eyes. "I can't wait for them to destroy the planet…"

Slowly, two options dawned to the half-Saiyan teenager. The only two he had.

The first was that he stopped the Saiyans from destroying the planet he was on. The only way he could do that though was if he fought them, and killed them. Although he wouldn't mind getting rid of Nappa and Raditz, he knew he couldn't kill Vegeta because then he himself would simply never exist. He might just disappear into thin air or something if he killed Vegeta.

Plus, there was the not-so-small factor that the man was actually his father and that even though his admiration and perspective of the man had been shaken badly, Trunks still loved him deeply. He knew he could never, ever bring himself to actually kill Vegeta, though he was well aware that he was strong enough to.

That left only the second option.

If he couldn't stop them, then he would simply have to join them until he had enough time to figure out how to get out of this mess. After all, Trunks was half-Saiyan, and he was the strongest fighter perhaps in the universe in the timeline he was now in. He nodded slowly to himself, knowing he would have to suppress his power and be one of them. He didn't want to stand out, but he would do enough to gain the acceptance of the Saiyans… especially their prince. He would hide his identity and his Super Saiyan power and present himself as a Saiyan survivor. One of them. A brother that they would hopefully accept.

Determined now, Trunks took to the sky and flew off in the direction Nappa and Raditz had flown in. He kept his eyes straight ahead, letting the wind whip through his hair, never looking down at the death below him.

Finally, after 18 years, he was going to meet his father. Just not in the way he had hoped…


	2. Introductions

Trunks landed gracefully on the ground and immediately began to run towards the large palace before him – or what was left of it. The building loomed ahead of him, a regal fortress now notably ruined. There were large, gaping holes in the structure, with smoke rising and cascading towards the sky as chunks of what looked like concrete fell randomly, bringing more of the palace down. It looked like an army with thousands of men had attacked, but Trunks knew better. It wasn't thousands who did this, only three.

Or perhaps, only one.

He felt ki flare up ahead of him, and he reached behind him and pulled out his sword, never breaking his smooth stride. Raditz and Nappa were in the remnants of this palace, he was sure of it. Trunks quickened his pace, his boots hitting the ground lightly and quickly, his speed so fast that it seemed like he was barely touching the ground at all. He knew by the random flaring of ki that there was some kind of fight going on. His thought was confirmed when a shot of blue light tore through the ceiling of the palace, bringing rock tumbling down as the building threatened to collapse.

Trunks leaped up into the air in one fluid motion, being sure all the while to hide his own power level so his arrival wouldn't be detected. He landed on an upper story window ledge, carefully balancing himself against the window. He looked over his shoulder and stood still, making sure nothing was following him. The sky of the planet was a dark purple as night set in, and a cool breeze blew his lavender hair back out of his face. His hair immediately fell back into his eyes when the breeze passed, but Trunks remained still. The palace was stable for now, but a few more blasts like that last one and it wouldn't be standing much longer.

Effortlessly and silently, Trunks opened the rather large window and slipped inside. He looked around as he put his sword back in his holster, not able to see much in the dark room. He did catch a glimmer of light under the door as muffled voices began to trickle in, coming undoubtedly from a lower level. Suddenly loud laughter rang out, and an explosion rocked the room Trunks was in. He maintained his balance, barely, but things crashed in the room on the floor around him. He couldn't make out the items in the dark but he could distinctly make out glass shattering.

Trunks jogged up to the door as soon as everything settled down and cracked it open a bit, peering out cautiously. There was a walkway immediately outside of the door that ran along the edge of the wall. There was an intricate rail that lined the walkway, which was a large U-shape overlooking some type of court in the level below. Trunks could feel the energy level of Raditz and Nappa down there, among others. There was one in particular that stood out among the rest, clearly the strongest of everyone gathered below. Trunks had never felt it before, and yet, somehow, he immediately recognized it.

Quietly, Trunks slipped out of the room. He stayed close to the door, grateful that the upper level seemed mostly dark with all of the light coming from the court below him. The teenager lowered to his knees, before lowering himself completely to the ground. He crawled up to the rail, with all of its detailed design of warriors engaging in legendary wars, and peered right through them to the sight below.

"Is that all, purple man?" Raditz asked mockingly, a smirk on his face as he watched an alien dressed in royal garments cower in front of him. The alien raised its clawed hands as if pleading, which only made Raditz laugh. Trunks scowled at this, before examining the rest of the court.

Raditz and the alien were in the center, evidently the current stars of the sadistic "tournament" behind held, a tournament being held clearly only to mock the aliens before they were slaughtered. Trunks felt his stomach churn at the sight. Behind the alien facing Raditz, maybe ten or so feet back, were more aliens who also appeared to be royalty. Not one of them looked human, but Trunks could recognize the intense fear as they watched the ensuing madness.

Ten feet behind Raditz stood the menacing Saiyan named Nappa, tail secured around his waist, blue scouter on and an amused grin on his face as he watched.

Further behind Nappa, up some steps and seated on what looked to be the throne of the palace, was the smallest Saiyan of the group. He had hair that stood straight up like a flame that was dark as night, with eyes that were even darker.

Trunks felt his mouth run dry as he recognized the features on the Saiyan's face even from where he was. He had been seeing those same features his whole life every time he looked in a mirror. Except for his blue eyes and his lavender hair which he inherited from his mother's side, he was practically the mirror image of the bored Saiyan sitting on the throne below him.

Without a doubt, that was Vegeta, the Prince of the Saiyans, the man his mother would eventually someday fall in love with.

His father.

"Are you going to finish this or not, Raditz? We don't have all day," laughed Nappa, very clearly amused by the show in front of him. Vegeta remained silent, his expression a mixture of indifference and boredom as he leaned his head against his gloved hand, his elbow perched on the armrest of the throne he was sitting on. His green scouter shined in the light, a silent reminder to Trunks to stay hidden as he formulated a plan on how to proceed.

"Aw I'm just having some fun, Nappa," Raditz shot over his shoulder.

"Well hurry up, I want a piece of the action too," Nappa replied, his grin growing on his face. He turned to look at his prince. "How about you, Vegeta? Ya feel up for some fun?"

"I tested the waters a bit before you two arrived," Vegeta said, his cold voice sending a chill down Trunks' spine. The prince's voice was shrill and slightly more higher-pitched than the teenager's, but it was far more sadistic and calculating than Trunks could have imagined. A pinch of madness simmered just below the surface, as if the Saiyan could lose control at any moment and destroy them all.

Vegeta motioned with his free hand towards the damaged ceiling and the ruined walls and staircases that surrounded them. "I helped redecorate, you see."

"Hey, I think it's an improvement!" Nappa laughed. "They should pay you for helping them out."

"So you're out then?" Raditz asked. Trunks looked back towards Raditz and noticed that the Saiyan had the alien he was "facing" on the floor, his large boot pressed firmly against the alien's chest as the alien squirmed beneath him in clear agony.

"Well, I don't want to get my armor dirty," Vegeta said, cracking a sinister smirk. "Besides, no one here is worth my time. I'll be more entertained by watching you two take care of them. I'm a bit disappointed, the base gave this planet a high rating for warriors, but these fools are nothing but weaklings."

"Those ratings are probably outdated, because no one here is a match even for Raditz, who is barely over a weakling himself," Nappa added as he chuckled. Raditz growled, indignant at the insulting comment, a reaction that made Vegeta laugh loudly. Trunks' eyes narrowed. He recognized that laugh as being the same one that preceded the explosion he felt when he first snuck into the palace, and this recognition made his body tense.

A fraction of a second later, a light flickered on the green-tinted glass screen on Vegeta's scouter. He immediately looked up in the teenager's direction, the laughter gone as his dark, intense eyes surveyed the area. He could only see the rail that went around the court, and darkness beyond that. Trunks had barely had enough time to get out of eyesight, and was now sitting with his back against the door that led to the room he had first come into. He knew that he was out of sight from his father, and he sighed, wondering what to do now as he felt his heart pounding in his chest.

Should he just show himself? Drop down and claim to be a Saiyan? Participate in their tournament and earn their respect through his fighting skills? What if they didn't believe him? Or worse, what if they forced him to fight to the end? He was sure that even a fight for sport would quickly turn into a fight to the death with his fellow Saiyans. He couldn't risk the chance of a fight. He had to gain their trust and not let himself be goaded into a fight, but he also couldn't let them know how powerful he really was. Trunks drew in a deep and shaky breath, knowing he was running out of time and running out of options.

Vegeta gave a low grunt as he crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes not moving from the upper floor that was darkened. Neither Nappa nor Raditz noticed this though as they continued their banter in the background. Vegeta narrowed his eyes suspiciously, completely tuning them out, before slowly turning to watch the rest of the so-called tournament before him.

He had felt a flicker of an outrageous power level, but he decided his scouter was likely malfunctioning. No one on the planet could be so strong, it was impossible. He had done a thorough search with his scouter as soon as he and the other Saiyans had arrived, and he was by far the most powerful being on the planet. He was capable of crushing even his Saiyan comrades to dust if the desire ever came to him. Besides, the scouters Nappa and Raditz had didn't seem to indicate anything at all. The Saiyan Prince grunted and leaned back in his throne, a scowl on his face, feeling ridiculous that he had been led astray by a scouter that clearly needed repairing.

Raditz drove his boot down hard onto the alien's back, eliciting a painful shriek. Trunks felt sick as he recognized the sound of bones breaking. The rest of the aliens visibly cringed, with one visibly trembling, as Raditz laughed.

"Looks like I win, purple man," Raditz snickered.

"Alright, my turn!" Nappa said in a loud booming voice. He cracked his fingers and began walking towards Raditz. "You've had way too much fun, and now I want in."

"Fine, geez, so impatient," Raditz laughed, removing his boot from the alien. The royal garments that were once brightly worn were now dirty and reminiscent of rags. The alien struggled to move away from the brutal Saiyan who had injured it so badly as Raditz watched in amusement. "Look, guys, I think it's trying to crawl."

"The freak is trying to walk away," Nappa said with a chuckle. "Here, let me help it."

With no warning, Nappa kicked the alien hard on its side, sending it flying up violently through the air and crashing through the rail. The alien rolled onto the walkway, landing mere feet next to Trunks. Trunks watched the alien, horrified at the pain he saw etched on its face.

Down below, Vegeta smirked as Nappa and Raditz both laughed. Trunks grit his teeth, knowing he had to step in soon. He couldn't let this go on; but he couldn't fight them either. No, he would have to use his wits and try to avoid further pain to this alien race while preserving his own future.

"So, who do I get?" Nappa asked, turning towards the remaining aliens as Trunks' eyebrows furrowed. He had seen enough.

It was time.

The aliens immediately began to back up, making Raditz laugh. He had moved to take Nappa's place close to Vegeta, who was seated straight up in his borrowed throne. The prince had his body facing the action directly, but his eyes were narrowed and looking in the direction Nappa had kicked the alien into. "Look at them," Raditz sneered. "They're all cowards, and they all deserve to die."

"I'll tell you what, whoever volunteers first, I'll give a quick and painless end to… the rest of ya? You won't be so lucky," Nappa said as he broke into a deep laugh. He tilted his head and cracked his neck. "So who wants to go first?"

"Enough."

Vegeta, Nappa, Raditz, and the aliens all looked up towards the voice that rang out. Vegeta slowly stood up, his eyes locked on the teenage boy standing in plain sight on top of the rail of the landing above them. Nappa growled at the boy as Raditz immediately pressed the button on his scouter to assess the new threat. The alarmed aliens backed up, terrified now that another monster was there to harm them and use their royal palace for more destruction. Trunks glared down at everyone, before jumping into the air. He did a flip in midair before landing on the floor before his stunned audience.

"Who is this?" Nappa asked no one in particular, annoyed that his fun was being interrupted. "He doesn't look like the other aliens."

"Raditz," Vegeta commanded harshly, his eyes never leaving the boy. His eyes narrowed and he wondered if this boy was who his scouter had picked up earlier. But that was impossible. A boy with that much power? He scowled at the thought.

"I'm on it," Raditz said, silently urging his scouter to work faster so as not to raise the prince's ire. "He's at level 5, Vegeta," Raditz said, a slow grin spreading across his face. "He's pathetic, his power level is even lower than these aliens."

"Who are you, boy?" Vegeta demanded. Trunks remained silent, lowering his head and letting his lavender hair fall into his eyes. Raditz and Nappa shot each other looks as Vegeta growled angrily. The prince took a step forward. "Answer me now, kid, or I will silence you permanently," he warned. Trunks could hear no lying or bluffing in his father's voice.

It was now or never.

Trunks slowly approached the group, the aliens immediately moving out of his way as they huddled together, not sure what to expect of these strangers. Nappa and Raditz both looked on, neither trusting the boy as Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest. When Trunks was only a few feet away from his father, he surprised everyone in the court by kneeling down in front of the prince.

"Prince Vegeta, this civilization is defenseless, and they mean you and your Saiyan friends no harm," Trunks said, his head lowered and his eyes focused on the floor. "I ask you to please leave them in peace."

"Look at this, they have an ambassador who speaks for them," Raditz said mockingly.

"At least now we can translate what those ugly purple freaks are saying to us," Nappa snickered.

"Now hold on, you two," Vegeta said calmly, looking at the kneeling boy before him in amusement. "It seems as though my reputation precedes me. You know who I am, boy?"

"Yes, you are Vegeta, Prince of all Saiyans," Trunks replied, not looking up.

"And may I ask how you know this? You clearly are not from this planet, seeing as how you look nothing like the natives here," Vegeta pointed out, his curiosity piqued, but his eyes dark with suspicion. He could see the boy hesitating, and he chuckled, though there was no humor in his voice. "Do not try my patience, boy."

Trunks hesitated only a moment longer, and immediately felt his head whip to the side. He used a hand to steady himself on the floor after Vegeta backhanded him hard across the face. His father was strong, much stronger than Trunks had thought. Even though he was over a million times stronger than the prince, Trunks knew he could not flaunt his powers during this time he was in and in front of the company he had. He spit out a little blood as Vegeta grasped his jacket roughly.

"I warned you once, boy," Vegeta threatened dangerously, leaning menacingly over Trunks as he raised his free hand to gather up energy for a ki blast. "Answer me now, or you die here. How do you know of me, and who are you with?"

"Do it, Vegeta," Raditz encouraged. "He might be with _them_."

" _They_ are of no concern to us," Nappa countered. "We can destroy them easily."

"Yes, but if he _is_ with them, then he will not live to see another day," Vegeta growled, his grip tightening on Trunks' jacket as that sinister smirk crept up to his face, sending chills down Trunks' spine. Was his father mad? "After all, it's a matter of principle."

"I know who you are," Trunks said, making direct eye contact with his father, "Because I am also a Saiyan."

Silence instantly filled the room.

Vegeta stared at the teenage boy, shock etched into his features and the ki blast dying at his fingertips as Nappa's jaw dropped and Raditz simply stared. Trunks tried to gauge the reaction his father would have once the shock wore off, but he couldn't read the prince at all. Seconds ticked away into minutes as Raditz and Nappa slowly looked from the boy to their leader and their prince. But the prince was gazing so intensely at the boy that neither dared interrupt him until he was ready.

Finally, the shock disappeared from Vegeta's face and anger momentarily flashed. Quicker than Trunks thought him capable of, Vegeta shoved Trunks violently, sending the boy flying back a few feet. Trunks recovered in midair and landed on his feet in a crouched position.

"Impossible," Vegeta snarled. "Curse you and your lies, boy!"

"Let me take care of this rodent," Nappa said, smirking as he approached Trunks and eager to pick up where he had left off. "I'll teach him a thing or two to use our heritage as some joke."

"You wish you were Saiyan, kid," Raditz snickered.

"I'm not lying," Trunks said, his voice firm and unwavering, his eyes locked on his father. He lowered his head and continued, "Prince Vegeta, it's an honor to be in your presence. I know of you because I have Saiyan blood running through my veins. You are my prince and I do not wish you any harm."

"Do you take me to be a fool, boy?" Vegeta hissed furiously. "The only full-blooded Saiyan survivors are me, Nappa, Raditz, and maybe Kakarrot, Raditz's brother, if he survived his assignment. Three for sure, maybe four total. You, boy, are not in that picture."

"I do have Saiyan blood," Trunks challenged.

"Liar," Raditz shot back, indignant that this weakling was standing up to Vegeta. "Saiyans do not have that ridiculous colored hair. All full-blooded Saiyans have black hair."

"That's right," Vegeta affirmed, glaring at Trunks. "A true Saiyan has black hair, and you don't. And most importantly, you have no tail. You are no Saiyan."

Trunks blanched a bit, not having thought of any of that prior to the Saiyans mentioning it. It didn't matter though, it wasn't like he had time or methods to dye his hair black. And it wasn't as though he could suddenly grow a tail either. Seeing the hostile looks he was getting from the Saiyans and the downright murderous glare he was getting from his father, Trunks knew he had to come clean. Slowly, he knelt down and bowed his head again.

"Prince Vegeta… you're right. I am not a full-blooded Saiyan. I am in fact half-Saiyan," he said.

"A half-breed?" Vegeta asked incredulously, his eyes suspicious.

"Yes, my father was a full-blooded Saiyan and my mother was… a different race." Trunks relented, not wanting to give up that much information about his background. "My father died in battle when I was an infant, so I never knew him. I do have Saiyan blood, that was not a lie."

Vegeta's eye twitched as he stared at the boy while Nappa and Raditz walked up to him. Raditz looked over at Trunks who still had his head lowered, and he gave the boy a sneer. Nappa and Raditz faced Vegeta and purposely gave Trunks their back. Trunks looked up a little and peered up at them, two fingers on his right hand crossed.

"A half-breed? Impossible," Raditz whispered.

"He could be with _them_ ," Nappa told Vegeta, "He could be a spy trying to get on the inside."

Vegeta growled, "They already outnumber us, hundreds to only three. Why would they bother recruiting a weakling boy to fight their battles for them?"

"They want you dead, they are desperate," Raditz pointed out. "Perhaps they threatened the weakling with his life or his family's life in exchange for gaining our trust and gathering information on our whereabouts and activities."

"I can kill them all single-handedly," Vegeta said dryly, snorting. "Their efforts are annoying but hardly worth losing any sleep over."

"Reports are they are growing stronger and are involved in aggressive recruiting," Nappa reminded him. "We have a lot of enemies in the universe."

"I know, it's a problem, but not an unsolvable one. I hardly see how this boy can be beneficial to them."

"The timing is suspicious with the events of last week," Raditz whispered.

Vegeta turned to Raditz then, his eyes narrowed, "Are you afraid of them, Raditz?" Though it was phrased as a question, it was pronounced more as a statement.

"No," Raditz answered immediately. "I just do not want us to be blindsided with their large numbers."

"Let Vegeta and me handle the planning," Nappa snickered. Raditz bristled at the backhanded insult, but did not reply as Vegeta contemplated silently to himself. The two Saiyans watched him expectantly.

Behind them, Trunks was eyeing the aliens that were still huddled together near the far wall. He wanted to motion for them to leave, but he knew his father would see. He turned his eyes back towards the Saiyans, one knee still on the floor as he observed them.

Nappa was enormous and Raditz was almost as tall, but his father Vegeta was much shorter than either. He reached just above Nappa's elbow without his hair. Including his hair, he barely reached Nappa's shoulder. In build, he also did not compare to the two larger Saiyans. While they both were ripped and muscle-bound, the smallest Saiyan was leaner and thinner. He almost looked lanky in comparison.

Trunks tried not to stare at his father, but he had such a commanding presence that it was hard not to. Plus, Trunks was still trying to deduce his father's age. He was clearly older than Trunks, but it was very hard to tell how much older. He admittedly did not know much about Saiyans since he had been caught off guard about the issue with his hair and had completely forgotten about his lack of a tail, but he did know that Saiyans retained youthful looks for much longer than humans. As a result, it was going to be very difficult to simply guess his father's age.

What wasn't difficult to figure out was the fact that regardless of the size differences, Raditz and Nappa were very much Vegeta's followers, and he was very much their leader. Trunks tried not to stare too much as they talked to each other in low, hushed tones. He waited, his body tense.

Finally, Raditz and Nappa both turned to face him. Raditz took a few steps towards Trunks while Nappa stayed at Vegeta's side. The smallest Saiyan was staring intensely at Trunks, arms crossed over his chest, an emotionless expression on his face. Next to him on his right side, Nappa chuckled. Trunks stood up and faced Raditz, his face set in stone.

"We've decided that even if what you say is true, boy, and you are in fact half-Saiyan, your half-breed genetics have unfortunately made you a weakling. Therefore you are of no use to us," Raditz said with a triumphant glimmer in his eyes. "Too bad."

"Or maybe your scouters are limited in what they can detect," Trunks responded calmly. Vegeta raised an eyebrow at this but remained silent.

"Is that some sort of challenge?" Raditz hissed indignantly. Trunks just gave a smirk in response.

_Nappa,_ Vegeta communicated silently to his comrade. Nappa looked over at the prince out of the corner of his eye. _Do you recognize this boy?_

_No,_ Nappa replied mentally. _I've never seen the kid before in my life. Why do you ask, Vegeta?_

Vegeta frowned, his eyes never leaving Trunks. _He just seems familiar, like I've seen him somewhere before._

_Hmph._ Nappa turned to gaze at the boy, and study his features more carefully. _Now that ya mention it, he does seem kinda familiar._

_I suppose it doesn't matter. We have no use for a weakling, even if he is one of us._

_I know, Frieza would destroy this kid just by looking at him,_ Nappa snickered.

Vegeta grit his teeth together, a muscle flexing in his jaw. He did not respond.

"In case you didn't notice, kid, we kind of have a little tournament going here," Raditz sneered. "Now, you have two choices. You can either leave right now, and die later when we destroy this pathetic freak show of a planet, or you can stick around and die now, right here in our tournament."

"How about a third choice?" Trunks suggested.

"What's that?"

"I join you guys. After all, three is an odd number," Trunks said with a smirk.

The three Saiyans stared at him blankly, as if he had grown a second head right in front of them. Finally, Raditz burst out into loud laughter. He leaned his head back and laughed loudly while Nappa chuckled in the back. Vegeta did not react, his eyes still scrutinizing Trunks as he tried to think of why the boy looked so familiar to him.

"You, join us? Kid, don't make me laugh," Raditz said as he shook his head in amusement. "Now since you're still here, I'm assuming you want the second option. Since you're so eager to be one of us, I'll show you one of the tricks of the trade." An evil smile grew on his face as he raised a hand over his head, blue light starting to cackle from it. Vegeta and Nappa looked on expectantly as Trunks stared Raditz down. "I call this one, _Keep Your Eye on the Birdie…_ "

Trunks just smiled back. Raditz posed such a small threat to him, it was almost sad. But Trunks knew he could not destroy Raditz. He didn't want to tempt fate with such a drastic change in the original timeline that he always knew. But just because he couldn't kill Raditz didn't mean that he was going to be humiliated in front of Nappa and Vegeta, either. Both Saiyans looked on, their scouters activated and running as Raditz increased his power level.

"Here it comes, catch!" Raditz shouted, throwing an energy blast towards the teenager.

The blast reached Trunks a split second later. A fraction of a second passed, and Trunks had already deflected the attack and strategically sent the blast through a hole that was already in the building, thereby causing no further structural damage. Trunks hadn't moved a muscle except to raise his hand and deflect the blast, and he smirked a little when he saw the Saiyans staring at him in shock.

"Impossible!" Raditz cried out, his eyes large as he gawked at Trunks in disbelief. "There's no way he could have blocked my attack from so close a range!"

Nappa pressed the button on the side of his scouter to get a read on Trunks. "Are you sure you read level 5, Raditz?"

Vegeta suddenly remembered the flicker of power he had felt from earlier as Raditz shot Nappa an irritated glance. "Yes, I'm sure! I know how to read my scouter!"

"It was him," Vegeta said to himself quietly, half amazed and half annoyed that the boy seemed to be stronger than he was letting on.

"I'm still getting a power level of 5," Nappa said, looking over at Vegeta. "There's no way he could have blocked that attack with such a lower fighting power…"

"Somehow, this boy knows how to suppress his power level," Vegeta said as he stepped up towards Raditz and Trunks. Everyone turned to look at him, with Raditz immediately stepping away. Vegeta locked eyes with Trunks and the boy tensed. His father's eyes were unreadable. "Isn't that right, kid?"

"How is that possible?" Raditz asked, but Vegeta just ignored him.

Slowly, with his arms crossed over his chest, Vegeta began to circle Trunks. Trunks remained still, though he felt like he was prey and he was being stalked by a dangerous predator as his father analyzed him. He followed the prince's movements out of the corner of his eye, on guard for a possible blind side.

"Earlier, my scouter detected a massive power reading, here in this very palace. It was very brief and it disappeared after only a moment," Vegeta said, his tone also unreadable as he continued circling Trunks. He shot a look over at his Saiyan comrades. "The power reading was stronger than both of yours, and I think it was this boy who the power belonged to."

"What!" Nappa yelled.

"That's not possible!" Raditz added. "This boy, stronger than both of us?"

"Show us, kid," Vegeta ordered, coming to stand now in front of Trunks. Curiosity lit up the prince's face as he smirked, clearly intrigued and thankful that the visit to the planet hadn't been a complete waste of time. "Show us your true power."

Trunks knew that their scouters would explode if he listened to his father and went Super Saiyan, but he knew that option was out of the question anyways. The teenager took a deep breath, not sure how much was _too_ much. He could increase his power level very rapidly and with very little effort, but the last thing he wanted to do was show himself as being the strongest Saiyan alive. His mother hadn't told him much about his father, but Trunks knew enough to know that he would severely wound his pride if he showed his father that he was the stronger of the two.

Trunks grit his teeth and clenched his hands into tight fists, making more of a show than he needed to in order to avoid further suspicion. He saw three scouters light up simultaneously and saw lights flashing on the scouters as his power level began to climb. Trunks closed his eyes, using his discipline to keep the increase reasonable while only using a small infinitesimal fraction of his actual power.

"Astounding," Vegeta whispered as he watched the teenager in awe. "His power level is over 9,000."

"And… climbing…" Raditz stuttered, watching the numbers climb on his scouter.

"It just hit 12,000!" Nappa exclaimed. "That's stronger than me!" Trunks took that as a sign to stop. Slowly, he took a deep breath and relaxed, opening his eyes to look at the Saiyans standing before him.

"It must be broken, there's just no way!" Raditz growled, taking his scouter off and crushing it in his bare hand. Vegeta gave Nappa a look, and the larger Saiyan nodded.

"Raditz," Nappa said, stepping up and cracking his knuckles. "Let's find out how good our scouters are."

Before Trunks had a chance to respond, Raditz and Nappa both suddenly charged right at him. Raditz reached Trunks first and went to punch him, but Trunks disappeared before he could. Raditz barely registered that the teenager wasn't in front of him when Trunks reappeared behind Raditz and gave him a hard kick to the back that sent Raditz sprawling ten or so feet forward in complete agony. Nappa reached Trunks a fraction of a second later, but before Nappa knew what was happening, Trunks had kicked him in the back of his legs, bringing the large man down to his knees. Nappa opened his mouth to cry out in pain but froze when he felt the cool metal of a sword pressed right against his neck.

"Don't move… my sword might slip," Trunks warned. The entire exchange took less than two seconds to occur, but now he was the only one left standing. Loud laughter suddenly rang out in the court, making Trunks look over at the smallest Saiyan who was amused by what had just happened.

"This kid just made fools out of you both," Vegeta laughed. Even his laughter had madness mixed into it. Trunks frowned and pulled his sword away from Nappa before taking a step or two back as the large Saiyan rose to his feet. Nappa slowly turned to face the teenager, a vein pulsing in his temple, his rage and humiliation evident.

"Why you little punk," sneered Nappa. Trunks looked out of the corner of his eye at Raditz, who was slowly getting back up to his feet. "Kid, I'm going to teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

"Enough," Vegeta said loudly. "The boy is no weakling after all, and he wants to join us." Vegeta looked pointedly at Nappa. "We could use some reinforcements of our own, as insurance."

Nappa bristled, clearly infuriated, but biting back his tongue as Raditz slowly limped up to them while staring daggers at Trunks. "Vegeta, he's not even a full-blooded Saiyan," Raditz growled. Vegeta immediately turned his full, intense gaze to Raditz, who instantly added, "B-but, if you think he's worth it…"

"What's your name, kid?" Vegeta asked, approaching Trunks again.

"I… don't have one," Trunks relented, choosing his words carefully. He looked down as Vegeta walked up to him. "My mother didn't give me one."

"A half-breed piece of trash with no name," Vegeta remarked in mock astonishment as he began to circle Trunks once again. "You're like a charity case, kid. But this isn't an adoption center, you know." Trunks nodded, not responding, so Vegeta continued, "You said your father was a full-blooded Saiyan. What was his name?"

"I don't know," Trunks responded.

"I don't like being lied to, boy," Vegeta warned, his voice a dangerous snarl.

Suddenly, his fist shot out, punching Trunks hard in his back. Vegeta hit nowhere near as hard as the androids from Trunks' time, but the teenager dropped to his knees anyways. Trunks winced when he felt Vegeta grab a fistful of his lavender hair and yank his head back forcefully.

"I am not lying, I don't know his name, my mother never told me," Trunks said as convincingly as he could, suddenly feeling the metal from his own sword pressing up under his chin. He suddenly wished he was a better liar. His father was very intuitive, and he couldn't afford any mistakes now.

"Have we met before?" Vegeta demanded.

"No," Trunks answered, wincing as his father tightened his grip on his hair.

"What's your name, kid?"

"I don't have one."

"Why are you on this planet?"

"I landed here on accident. My ship was destroyed when I arrived."

"Do you know of a man named Ares?"

"No."

"Are you working for anyone?" Vegeta pressed the sword tighter against Trunks' skin.

"No, no one."

Vegeta stayed silent, contemplating while Nappa and Raditz looked on, both eager to finish what they started and just waiting for the word. Trunks stayed silent as well, willing his pounding heart to slow down. If his father didn't believe him, then what was he going to do? They would be engaged in an all out battle, and he just couldn't take the chance. He could accidentally kill any of them with their enormous power differences, and they would surely not stop until he was dead.

Rapidly, Trunks tried to come up with a plan if Vegeta called his bluff. Maybe he could knock them out and steal one of their space ships? But they might be able to track him down. They would surely make it their _mission_ to track him down if he did that. But it was probably his best option if the current plan backfired.

Suddenly, the metal was removed from his skin and his hair was released. Trunks slowly opened his eyes and looked up curiously at the Prince of Saiyans who was standing over him. His father was glaring down at him menacingly, holding his sword in his right hand. After a few moments though, Vegeta smirked that sinister smirk.

"Well now you're working for us, kid," Vegeta said.

"What! We're going to let this half-breed rat come with us?" Raditz yelled out indignantly.

Vegeta cracked his neck. "Excuse me, I have to take care of something," he said in mock politeness to Trunks. Trunks got up to his feet and watched his father walk over to Raditz, who backed up a little.

"Vegeta, I'm sorry, I didn't -"

Before he could finish what he was saying, Vegeta jumped into the air and kicked Raditz, hard, right in the face. The Saiyan was sent flying back and crashing into the wall as Vegeta landed lightly on his feet.

"I broke your jaw so I don't have to hear your mouth. Next time you question one of my decisions, I'll break your neck so I don't have to hear you ever again. I won't warn you again," Vegeta said, his face hard as he shot a look over at Nappa, silently warning him as well. He turned around and walked back over to Trunks, who was watching in shock while Nappa went to assist Raditz.

"Now then, where were we?" Vegeta asked casually. Trunks tried to speak, but couldn't. He was questioning his father's sanity more and more as each moment passed. "Ah yes," the prince said. "You were going to join us, yes?"

"Um, yeah," Trunks answered uncertainly, questioning his plan a little bit now.

"Good. Come with me then, boy," Vegeta said, walking off. Trunks hesitated momentarily before following his father, his stomach turning as he saw that they were heading towards the forgotten aliens who had watched everything. They were clearly too frightened to leave, and it would have been futile anyways. There is no way they would have been allowed.

Vegeta walked right up to the smallest alien, what looked like a child, and grabbed one of its scaly arms. The other aliens cried out in protest at this, but Vegeta yanked the child close to him. He then let go of the child alien and raised his hand towards the others.

"No, don't!" Trunks yelled, just as a ki blast was preparing to fire from his father's fingertips. Vegeta looked at Trunks out of the corner of his eye, before smirking.

"And you say you have Saiyan blood," Vegeta said mockingly. He lowered his hand and turned to Trunks, handing him his sword back. "But you aren't going to join us on the hunt and not participate. No one is allowed to be a spectator around here except me."

"They have done nothing to you," Trunks said in a low voice, his blue eyes looking right into his father's dark ones. There was nothing there to see though as Vegeta calmly returned his son's stare.

"I don't recall that ever being relevant," Vegeta replied, that hint of madness in his voice now no longer just a small hint. "But I can see that you're new to this, kid, so I'll make you a deal. You take care of this one here," he grabbed the alien child next to him, roughly shoving him in Trunks' direction, "And I'll spare the rest. If you refuse, I'll take care of them all." He extended his arm holding the sword, his eyes challenging. "Time to get your hands dirty, kid."

Hesitantly, Trunks took his sword from his father's hand. He turned it around so he was gripping the handle, and looked at the small alien before him. It was looking up at him in terror, and Trunks felt sick to his stomach. This being hadn't done a thing to him or his father. It couldn't defend itself, just like he couldn't defend himself for so long against the androids of his time.

His hand trembling, Trunks slowly placed his sword so it rested on the alien's shoulder. The alien child gave what sounded like a whimper. Trunks' eyes raised to his father, who was staring hard at him.

"I'm waiting," Vegeta said evenly. Trunks nodded, took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He lifted the sword, and brought it down quickly.

"I'm sorry," Trunks said, his tone regretful as he raised his eyes again to his father. "I can't."

Vegeta observed the teenager's sword, stopped a fraction of an inch away from the alien child's neck. His eyes raised to meet the boy's blue ones. There was silence as Trunks slowly withdrew his sword, putting it back in his holster. Vegeta's stare unnerved Trunks, making the teen somewhat anxious as he glanced over at the other Saiyans. Nappa was still back where they had been standing earlier. Raditz was now standing next to him, his jaw visibly swollen and discolored, hatred in his eyes as he glared at Trunks from across the court. Trunks looked back to his father.

Vegeta suddenly smiled. "I see now. Your mother's garbage genetics have tainted whatever Saiyan pride you had. You've lost your killer edge, even though you're tremendously powerful for a kid your age. Your sentimentality makes you weak, boy." Trunks didn't know how to respond, so he just nodded quietly. "That's okay though. I'll teach you to harness your true inner Saiyan drive to fight."

"I can't kill this child," Trunks said, and Vegeta just shrugged.

"Hey, kid, don't worry about it," Vegeta said easily as Trunks looked at him in confusion. "You're not used to it. I understand." Vegeta casually strolled up to where the alien child was. He placed both of his hands on the alien's shoulders, eliciting terrified trembling from the alien child. "I have a heart too, you know," Vegeta continued, that sinister smirk back on his face as he looked right at Trunks, who was now tense. "I'm not that bad, kid. I'm actually a great guy once you get to know me."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Trunks said hesitantly. Vegeta just chuckled, his grip visibly tightening on the alien's shoulders.

Suddenly, there was a flash of hot, bright light.

"No!" Trunks shouted.

The word hadn't completely left his lips when the alien child's now decapitated body fell in a heap to the floor. Vegeta automatically turned to the remaining aliens and fired a ki blast at them, disintegrating them on the spot as Trunks watched, horrified at what he was seeing.

Vegeta lowered his hand and looked down at the alien child's beheaded body in front of him. "Hmph," he snorted. "Looks like all the action made him lose his head." He looked up at Trunks, his smirk gone, a cold look on his face. "I always keep my word, boy." He turned and walked back towards the other Saiyans. "Guess I'm the new champion," he said, laughing that loud laugh of his as Trunks numbly sank to his knees before the dead alien's body.

His father was a monster. A murderer. A heartless and savage killer. Trunks had barely interacted with the man and he had already shaken him down to his core. How was he going to handle spending days, possibly weeks with him while he tried to fix the capsule to his time machine?

"Let's go, kid," Nappa yelled. Trunks slowly looked over and saw that Vegeta was already walking out of the court altogether, with Raditz following him close behind. Nappa was standing still though, eyes trained on Trunks, clearly waiting.

The teenager blinked back angry tears of frustration over the situation he found himself in. But he had no choice.

Slowly, he stood up and began to head towards them.


	3. Home Base

Trunks stared into the flames of the fire that Raditz had started. He, Raditz, and Nappa were seated on the ground surrounding the fire. Further away from the group, Vegeta lay on the ground by himself. The prince was on his back, his arms folded behind his head. He had one knee up and his other leg resting on that knee, his eyes closed. Trunks snuck a look at him every now and then, as if ensuring himself that the man laying on the ground was actually his father. There were so many questions Trunks wanted to ask him, years worth of questions, but no one was speaking and Trunks was not about to be the one to break the silence.

Abruptly, Raditz stood up and stalked away angrily. Trunks eyed him warily. He didn't have to be a genius to see that Raditz hated the fact that Vegeta had allowed him to join their group.

"Where is he going?" Trunks asked. The only sound he heard in response was the cackling of the flames in front of him. He glanced at Nappa who was eyeing Raditz's retreating figure with disgust. He shot a look over at his father, but the prince hadn't moved a muscle. It was hard to tell if Vegeta was even awake.

Finally, Nappa grunted. "Don't mind Raditz, kid," the large man said as he turned to look at Trunks over the flames. Trunks could see himself in the reflection of Nappa's blue scouter. "He does this every night."

"Does what?" Trunks asked. He looked over at Vegeta again, as if hoping his father would join in the conversation. He wanted so badly to talk to his father and understand what it was that possessed him to be the way he was. Surely, he wasn't like this when he met his mother… Trunks could only wonder how the killer laying on the ground could one day claim his mother's heart.

Nappa, oblivious to the look in Trunks' eyes as the teenager eyed the Saiyan Prince, snorted in response. "He thinks his brother is alive somewhere."

"He has a brother?" Trunks asked, surprised, as he looked over in the direction Raditz had walked off in. "Oh yeah... you guys mentioned that earlier..." Trunks said as he remembered his father saying there was potentially another Saiyan out there in the universe. Trunks eyed Raditz who had his back to them and was very clearly looking up at the night sky. Trunks' mind was racing. There was only one other full-blooded Saiyan that he hadn't encountered yet.

_Goku…_

"He _had_ a brother," Nappa corrected. "There is no way that his brother is still alive."

"How can you be so sure?" Trunks asked.

The teenager heard a grunt and looked over at Vegeta. The prince still had his eyes closed, a scowl now on his face. "You really don't know anything about your own people, do you, kid? Are you sure you're a Saiyan?"

"Yes, I am," Trunks replied automatically. Vegeta opened his eyes and turned his head to look at the teenager. Trunks felt a chill run down his spine at the cold look his father was giving him. The prince had a glare that could melt steel.

Vegeta stared at Trunks a moment longer, before snorting. He turned his head away again so he was looking up at the sky, before closing his eyes again. "Nappa, educate the boy," he ordered.

Nappa sighed and removed his scouter, tossing it aside. He reclined back on a log that was behind him, stretching his legs. Trunks stayed quiet as he sat cross-legged across the fire from Nappa, waiting patiently for him to speak.

"Well…" Nappa started, before frowning. "There's so much to tell… aw, Vegeta," Nappa groaned, looking over at his prince. "I don't know where to begin."

Vegeta smirked as he chuckled. "Start from the beginning, Nappa."

"Well, all right," Nappa relented. He grabbed a stick that was lying nearby and poked the fire while he gathered his thoughts. He looked up at Trunks and found the boy staring intently at him. Nappa blinked, feeling a sense of déjà vu as the light of the flames flickered over the teenager's face. "Are you sure we've never met before, kid?"

"I'm sure. I'd definitely remember someone as big as you," Trunks replied, hoping the tension gripping his muscles didn't give him away. He had never been more thankful that he didn't look more like his father than he was at that moment.

"Well, we Saiyans prepare planets for others to purchase. Before our planet Vegeta was destroyed by a large meteor, we would send our weakest babies to planets to purge them so we could sell the planets. Raditz's brother was sent on one of these missions."

"I see," Trunks said as he lowered his eyes to the flames again. "And he never came back."

"How could he? Our planet was destroyed," Nappa said. Trunks caught his father flinching in the corner of his eye. "Plus, we did a search on the planet and there is still life there. He failed his mission, which no Saiyan ever does. There is only one explanation for his failure."

"He's dead," Trunks said quietly.

"Exactly," Nappa said, grinning widely. "Hey Vegeta, we got ourselves a genius here."

Vegeta just grunted in reply.

Trunks glanced over at Raditz again, "But what if he _is_ still alive?"

"It doesn't matter," Vegeta said sharply, suddenly cutting in. "If Kakarot is truly alive, he will be even weaker than Raditz. The only one in the universe who cares whether that fool still breathes is his bigger fool of a brother. Kakarot is as useful to us dead as he is alive. Hardly worth the time of day."

"Yeah," Trunks replied, thinking quietly to himself. "So you guys were sent to wipe out this entire planet of all life?"

"Not exactly," Nappa said as he snickered. "There's another planet close to here that's up for sale. They don't want any nearby planets, so we're going to destroy this one."

"But why?" Trunks asked, looking over his father. "Why do this?"

"It's our assignment, kid," Vegeta snarled angrily. "We do what we're told to do by Frieza. And so will you."

"How can you all live like this? It's like you're practically…" the teenager's voice trailed off when he saw the ice cold glare his father was giving him.

"Say it, boy," Vegeta said, his eyes hard as he glared at his son. "Say it. We're practically what?"

"Slaves," Trunks said quietly, feeling very uncomfortable as he tried to avoid his father's eyes. He looked at Nappa, but he had his arms crossed and was staring into the fire. He glanced over at Raditz, but the Saiyan was sitting on the ground away from all of them, just watching the sky.

"That's right, kid, we're slaves. We belong to Frieza," Vegeta sneered in disgust. "But we won't always, boy."

"One day, kid," Nappa said as he poked the fire again with his stick. "One day, Vegeta will be strong enough and he'll kill that freak."

"That's right," Vegeta agreed, staring up at the sky now as Trunks looked over at him. Trunks sighed quietly, feeling pained at the life his father had. "One day boy, I will ascend and I will become the Super Saiyan of legend. I will avenge our people and destroy Frieza once and for all."

Trunks cringed, knowing that Goku was destined to destroy Frieza in his timeline, not Vegeta. He looked down into the flames again.

"I believe you," Trunks said, dejected now as he frowned. His thoughts were whirling in his head as he pictured himself going on these missions with his father. He felt sick at the thought. He shook his head a little, trying not to think about it. Instead he focused on Goku and the thought that somewhere in the universe, Goku and his mother were alive. They were safe, for the time being… but if he didn't finish his mission, they would never get to grow old.

He _had_ to finish his own mission. Somehow, if Trunks could just make it back to Earth, he could find Goku and give him the antidote. Then he could save the world from experiencing the future he had grown up in. And once he was there, he could have his mother repair the capsule for his time machine. Then he would finally be able to go home…

"Hey, boy, I'm talking to you," an angry voice hissed. Trunks blinked, snapping out of it as he looked over at his father. He had zoned out for some time it seemed. Raditz had rejoined them and was laying down next to the fire in a position similar to Vegeta's, and so was Nappa. Both appeared to be sleeping. Trunks glanced back at his father who scowled at him, "I said you better get some sleep if you want to survive tomorrow."

"What's tomorrow?" Trunks asked, trying not to show his unease. He removed his sword holster, feeling mildly safe with them now. After the rocky and tense "greeting session" they had held in the court of the alien palace, Nappa and Vegeta hardly seemed like they wanted to harm him any longer. Raditz clearly was the opposite, but Trunks knew he wouldn't disobey Vegeta.

"Tomorrow, we bring you to meet Frieza," Vegeta said, his tone emotionless. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "Brace yourself for a beating, boy."

Trunks removed his jacket as he frowned. "He's going to try to beat me?" he asked. He resisted the urge to snicker at the thought. He could destroy Frieza in mere seconds, but he knew that it wasn't his destiny to do so. That privilege was Goku's, and he could not interfere with that fate. If he did, Goku would never face Frieza and would therefore never be pushed to become a Super Saiyan. Trunks sighed and folded his jacket up, carefully minding the antidote and the capsule to his time machine. The Saiyan Prince snorted at his question as if it had a ridiculously obvious answer.

"If we're lucky, it'll just be you that gets the beating, kid," Vegeta mumbled, the hatred thick in his voice. "Depends on the bastard's mood."

Trunks swallowed heavily as he laid his folded up jacket on the ground. He was sure he could endure a beating from Frieza. The androids from his time were far more powerful than the alien tyrant and he had stood up to them. But if Frieza dragged his father into it and started beating him too… Trunks felt his chest tighten at the thought. Could he actually stand to watch his father be beaten down right in front of him?

The teenager sighed again as he laid down on the ground, resting on his side and using his jacket as a pillow. He brought his sword holster close to him and watched the flames dance in the night. He thought of his father's words, thought of Raditz staring up at the night sky, thought of his mother's tears at night when she missed his father, as he slowly succumbed to his fatigue…

Some time later, a loud crash sounded and woke Trunks up immediately. The teenager was on his feet in an instant, his sword already drawn. He looked around, his lavender hair falling into his eyes as he breathed heavily. The three Saiyans were all standing around five feet in front of him, and each had a large pod behind him that looked like a spaceship. The fire was no longer burning and had long burnt out it seemed. Raditz glared at him, his mouth very disfigured, while Nappa chuckled in amusement. Vegeta stood in between them, staring at Trunks. The prince just raised an eyebrow, his arms crossed over his chest.

"It's about time you woke up," Vegeta said evenly. Trunks lowered his sword slowly, tearing his blue eyes away from his father's and looking around.

"What was that loud crash?" he asked.

"That's your new ride, kid," Nappa said as he motioned with his chin for Trunks to look behind him. The teenager did and saw that the crash had been another pod landing on the planet. His blue eyes widened at the sight. "We called for one to be sent, just for you," Nappa said mockingly. Vegeta smirked as Trunks walked over to inspect the space pod. He pressed a button on the side and the door opened with a hiss.

"Well kid, it's time we go back to base," Vegeta said as he rested a hand on his own space pod.

"I thought you said we were going back tomorrow?" Trunks asked as he looked over his shoulder. Raditz had already climbed into his space pod and shut the door and Nappa was climbing into his. Vegeta pressed the button to open his, and looked over his shoulder back at Trunks.

"Foolish boy, it is tomorrow. There is no daylight on this planet," Vegeta said with a smirk. "Come on, kid, I thought you were supposed to be smart. Now hurry up and get in, or we're leaving you behind."

Trunks went back to grab his jacket and sword before hurrying back over to his own space pod. He climbed in and the door immediately closed in response. He looked around for some type of seat belt or other kind of restraint, but he barely had time before he was shot back into his seat as the space pod took off. After a few seconds, his body got used to the acceleration and he finally had the chance to check out the space pod.

"Wow, pretty cool," he whispered, amazed at how advanced the technology was. He was busy trying to study the coordinates when a flash of blinding light came through the small oval window on the space pod. Trunks winced and raised his hand to block the light from his eyes.

"Nice shot, Vegeta," Nappa's voice cackled in. Trunks felt his heart sink as he realized that his father must have destroyed the planet they were just on. He tried to breathe as his father chuckled over the imbedded sound system.

"I do have some good aim, don't I?" Vegeta asked. "Hey kid, are you hearing this?"

"Yeah," Trunks answered, pulling out the capsule to his time machine from his jacket. He gripped it tightly, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths as if the capsule alone was holding him together at the moment.

"You're destroying the next planet," Vegeta ordered. "It'll be good for you, kid." Trunks cringed, hearing the smirk in his father's voice as Nappa just laughed. "There's a scouter in the overhead. Put it on and get used to wearing it."

Trunks looked up and saw that there was indeed a compartment overhead. He slowly opened it and took out a brand new scouter with a red glass lens. He slipped it on over his left ear, the glass covering his left eye. It was comfortable enough. He pressed the button on the side and a light flickered on his screen with the word "activated" flashing.

"We'll be there in three hours," Nappa's voice came on. "Hey Raditz, can ya talk yet?"

A growl came through the sound system, and both Nappa and Vegeta laughed. Trunks though was too busy looking out his window. He had never gone into space before and the sights before him were incredible. He pressed one hand up against the glass. It was cold as ice.

The three hours came and went before Trunks even realized it. Soon the door to his space pod was opening. He stepped out hesitantly as an alien wearing Saiyan armor stood before him. The alien was green and wearing a green scouter. He scowled at Trunks, eyeing him up and down. Trunks looked over to the side and saw that the other Saiyans were climbing out of their space pods as well. They had landed on some huge landing pad apparently built just for space pods like theirs. In front of them was a large building made up of white stone. No doubt their home base.

Frieza's home base.

"So this is who Vegeta wanted a space pod for?" The alien snorted and reached out to poke Trunks in the chest. The teenager blinked and looked at the alien with narrowed eyes as the alien sneered. "Doesn't look so tough to me."

"Fool, do not touch him," Vegeta snarled as he walked over, Nappa and Raditz close behind. "He is one of my men now."

The alien pulled away and nodded as Trunks slipped his sword holster back on, holding his jacket in his hands. Vegeta eyed Trunks and snorted in disgust. He crossed his arms and looked over at Raditz.

"You, go to the rejuvenation chamber for an hour so your mouth heals," he demanded. Raditz shot Trunks a hateful look that made the teenager tense before walking off. "You," Vegeta said, turning to Nappa. "Go and alert Zarbon that we have arrived."

"Yes, Vegeta," Nappa said obediently before heading off in the direction Raditz had gone in.

"And as for you," Vegeta sneered, turning to face Trunks. He stared at him with his intense dark gaze for a moment, his eyebrows furrowed, before eyeing him up and down like the alien had just a minute ago. Trunks stared back at his father, not wanting to appear cowardly. "You're a Saiyan, boy, so it's time you dress like one. Come," the Saiyan Prince said, turning and walking off in a different direction than the other Saiyans, his arms still over his chest.

Trunks followed his father into the building, watching as some aliens immediately moved out of Vegeta's way while some just ignored his presence. Almost everyone wore armor, and it almost always matched Vegeta's. It was like everyone was ready for battle at a moment's notice.

"Is this where you live?" Trunks asked, quickening his pace to keep up with his father. Vegeta just grunted.

"If you can call slavery living, then yes, I suppose you could say I live here," Vegeta said in a bitter tone. "Don't get too comfortable though, kid. We hardly ever stay here for more than a few days at a time. There is too much work to be done."

"Yes, I see," Trunks answered, deep down absolutely thrilled that he was actually talking to his father. He had dreamt for years what it would be like to have a conversation with his father, and now it was happening. Sure, Vegeta was absolutely nothing like what he had pictured him to be, but he was still his father. Trunks knew though that Vegeta would just as readily break his jaw (or his neck) as he would answer his questions, so he knew not to push the prince. He just looked around, hoping to find a place where he could find some tools to repair his capsule.

Vegeta paused in front of a door and put his hand on a scanner. The metallic doors slid open and father and son walked in. Vegeta walked over and pressed a button on the wall. All of a sudden the wall came to life, whirring as it split in two and slid apart to reveal a large metallic closet filled with many replicas of the armor they all wore.

"Is this the armor everyone wears around here?" Trunks asked.

"This is Saiyan armor, boy," Vegeta said as he unscrewed a set. "Frieza decided to adopt our armor and have his men wear similar armor. I guess Saiyans have good taste in style," he said sarcastically, that bitter edge back in his voice. Trunks remained silent as Vegeta straightened. The Saiyan Prince eyed the armor he was holding, before grunting in approval. He turned and threw it back at Trunks, who reached up and caught it with one hand. Vegeta scowled at him and crossed his arms over his chest once again.

"Oh wow," Trunks said, putting down his jacket and holding the armor with both hands. "This is lighter than it looks. It looks kinda small though, F-…" Trunks stopped speaking, swallowing hard as Vegeta looked at him with a mixture of confusion and curiosity on his face. "Erm… for a guy like me," Trunks finished, inside cursing himself over his own stupidity. He had almost slipped and called Vegeta "Father"! He wanted to kick himself as Vegeta stared at him. Trunks looked down to his armor and tried to avoid the piercing gaze his father was giving him.

Finally, after what felt like a millennium, Vegeta snorted. "The material stretches, stupid boy," he sneered as Trunks let his body relax. He had never been so grateful to be insulted in his entire life. "There are gloves, boots, and the proper undergarment there," the Saiyan Prince said, pointing back to the closet. "Get dressed. I will return momentarily and then we will go introduce you to Frieza," Vegeta said as he walked past Trunks. He left the room without another word and without another look back.

Trunks relaxed when the door closed behind him, and began to get undressed. So far, everything was going according to plan. He didn't think he had upset the original timeline too much, and he had bought himself some time to repair his capsule. And if worse came to worse, he could probably escape to Earth to find his mother and deliver the antidote to Goku. He had time and options now.

And he was finally getting the chance to interact with his father. Granted, Vegeta was nothing like what he had ever imagined. The man had a heart of stone, if he even had a heart. But Trunks knew that deep down, deep down there was a good person there. His mother had seen it, and he would too.

Fifteen minutes later, Trunks turned at the sound of the metallic doors sliding open. He turned and saw his father there, his dark eyes scrutinizing the teenager's appearance. Trunks was now dressed wearing black tights, white boots, white gloves, and the traditional Saiyan armor with shoulder extensions. Over his eye he had the red scouter on. Vegeta stared at the boy, before slowly nodding his approval.

"Much better," the prince said as Trunks adjusted one of his gloves. Unbeknownst to Vegeta, Trunks was hiding a few things inside of the armor. Vegeta took a few steps towards Trunks as the door closed behind him. He stood there, a scowl on his face as Trunks frowned.

"Is something wrong?" the teenager asked after a moment of awkward silence.

"Listen kid," Vegeta finally snarled. "You work for Frieza, but you listen to me. I am the Prince of all Saiyans. I am _your_ prince. You do as I say, you got that?" he said dangerously. "You do what he says too, but you don't forget who I am. You don't forget who _you_ are. The day you do is the day you die by my hands," Vegeta said, his eyes staring a hole into Trunks. The teenager nodded, feeling unnerved by his father's hard gaze once again. "I don't care if Frieza tears you apart limb from limb today, kid. Hell, he could kill you for all I care. But hear me. When he beats you, show no fear. Never show him any fear, boy. You do not represent yourself in front of him. You represent us all. And though our Saiyan numbers might have dwindled, our Saiyan pride never will. Do I make myself clear?" he growled.

"Crystal," Trunks replied. Vegeta turned and headed back out, with Trunks following close behind.

"Good," Vegeta said, grunting. "Now we're going to find out just how tough you really are, kid," he said snidely.

"Yes, sir," Trunks answered respectfully as they walked together down a long dark corridor. Vegeta was leading the way with Trunks just a step behind him. He noted how even when walking, his father practically defined _pride._ The teenager felt his own pride swell up in his chest at the knowledge that even through the torture and slavery that was Frieza's reign, his father had not been completely broken. Corrupted and misguided, maybe, but still true to himself.

A true prince.

Father and son finally reached Nappa outside of a large set of metallic doors where no doubt, Frieza was waiting. Nappa and Vegeta nodded to each other, before they both looked over at him. Trunks gave a nod as Nappa glanced warily at Vegeta. Vegeta gave a firm nod.

Trunks silently swore that he would not disappoint his father as Nappa finally opened the doors.


	4. Round and Round

Round and round.

The pink liquid in the wine glass kept sloshing round and round as Frieza slowly rotated his wrist, holding up the glass between two white alien fingers. It was the only part of him that Trunks could see as he lowered himself to one knee, following Nappa's lead. The alient tyrant was sitting in a seat that was levitating a few inches off the floor, his back to the Saiyans as he faced a large glass window overlooking his empire.

On one side of Frieza was a tall, smug-looking green alien with dark green hair that was tied back, blue scouter on his face. The soldier had his arms nonchalantly crossed over his chest as he gazed at Trunks with amused curiosity. On the other side of Frieza was a shorter and much rounder pink alien with spikes coming out of his head and forearms. This one looked much more anxious at the sight of the newcomer, his eyes narrowed and his dark blue lips pursed in suspicion.

Vegeta walked between Trunks and Nappa, going forward a couple of feet before coming to a stop. He eyed the two aliens with suppressed loathing, before slowly lowering himself to one knee. The Saiyan Prince rested one forearm on his raised knee, clenched his fists, and finally lowered his head in a show of deep respect. Trunks frowned but did the same, his hair falling forward as he did so. The teen's sharp eyes stayed up though, his eyes going between the glass in Frieza's hands and the tense body of his father.

"Lord Frieza, the planet Dariya has been destroyed, just as you ordered," Vegeta reported. Trunks' eyes settled on his father's back. His voice sounded different when addressing the tyrant. It was as if the madness Trunks had been hearing was now subdued – controlled. In its place was nothing at all. No inflection, no emotion, no indication of the hatred Vegeta had so freely expressed to him, Nappa, and Raditz. Trunks glanced at Nappa out of the corner of his eye but the kneeling Saiyan had his head lowered and his eyes closed, his face expressionless.

The tall, green alien gave a dark chuckle as he looked calmly at Vegeta. "It took you two whole days, Saiyan," he said in a smooth voice with the slightest hint of an accent that Trunks couldn't place. The voice was laced with simultaneous arrogance and disdain. "I think you're losing your touch."

Vegeta slowly raised his head and glared at him. "The only thing I'm _losing_ is my patience with you, Zarbon," he snarled dangerously.

"You would do well to remember your place, _monkey_ _prince_ ," Zarbon hissed. "Unless you want me to remind you of it again," he threatened, cracking a small smirk. Vegeta growled low in his throat in response.

"Need we remind you that it would have only taken you Saiyans one day, Vegeta, had you not asked for an extra spaceship," the pink alien cut in bitterly, glancing from Vegeta to Trunks.

"Now now, Dodoria, Zarbon," Frieza said slowly, drawing everyone's attention. Trunks had never heard the tyrant speak before, and had still seen nothing of him except his alien hand that was holding a wine glass. And yet, the teenager couldn't help feeling his own form of hatred flaring inside of him upon hearing his voice. Frieza continued, in a shrill drawl with mock politeness, "I am sure Vegeta has a _perfectly_ acceptable explanation as to why he would order an extra spaceship without getting my permission first." The threat that rang in the air behind the words made Trunks grit his teeth angrily.

Round and round…

"Lord Frieza," Vegeta said, lowering his head again. He kept the hand that wasn't on his knee down by his side, his knuckles on the floor. Trunks could practically see the veins on his father's hand through his white glove from how tight his fist was clenched. "While Raditz, Nappa, and I were purging Dariya prior to destroying the planet, we found a youth with enormous fighting potential for his age. I thought it would be a waste to kill the boy. I decided to bring him here so you could meet him. I think he could be a useful ally."

Dodoria and Zarbon both immediately looked at Trunks, but his eyes were on the glass in Frieza's hand. It was no longer rotating.

What _was_ slowly rotating was the levitating seat the tyrant was seated in. Finally, he was facing all of them, a dark expression in his eyes and a red scouter over his left eye. Trunks silently sensed the energy that the alien was emitting; it was darker than his father's, which he didn't think was possible. The alien was slightly shorter than Vegeta it seemed, and for just a moment, Trunks ached to transform into a Super Saiyan and destroy him for good.

Frieza stared at Trunks with intense scrutiny for a few moments, with the teen bravely returning the stare, Vegeta's words from earlier still ringing clear in his mind. Frieza narrowed his eyes, before turning his gaze to Vegeta. He began to absent-mindedly rotate the glass in his hand again. "I see that you've already made the boy comfortable, Vegeta. I'm slightly offended you didn't ask my opinion of him first."

"I'll end his life immediately if you do not approve of him," Vegeta said calmly. Trunks tensed at his father's words, disbelief spreading through him as he looked at the prince's back. Just like that, his father would throw him to the wolves? He had come in expecting to withstand a beating at the hands of Frieza, and instead Vegeta had thrown out the idea to kill him as nonchalantly as a normal person would suggest taking a walk around the block. "I just thought his potential was too much to waste, and he was more than willing to join us."

Frieza stared at Vegeta suspiciously for a moment. Finally, he handed his glass to Dodoria, who instantly took it. He then turned his full attention to Trunks.

"Step forward, boy," the tyrant ordered, raising one hand to his scouter and pressing a button on it. "Let me take a good look at who _Vegeta_ thinks is worthy to be here."

Trunks slowly stood up and walked up past his father, feeling the prince's piercing eyes following his every movement as he came to stand around five feet in front of Frieza. The teenager took a deep breath to steady his nerves as he watched Frieza's scouter run.

"Impressive," Frieza finally said as he cracked a dark smirk. "What do _you_ think, Zarbon?"

"I think there is more here than meets the eye," Zarbon said smoothly, also smirking as he brushed a strand of dark green hair back out of his face.

Frieza chuckled. "Yes, yes, I think so too," Frieza said as he gave Trunks an amused look. "What's your name, boy?"

"I don't have one," Trunks lied immediately, as if on cue.

"Well, isn't that a pity?" Frieza asked, feigning sympathy. "And may I ask why you want to work for me?"

"I want to work for Prince Vegeta. Doing so means I have to work for you too," Trunks replied evenly, the disgust creeping into his voice.

" _Prince_ Vegeta…" Frieza said in a mocking tone, a smirk spreading over his face. Dodoria and Zarbon both snickered. "Why, I haven't heard my little monkey called that since he was a child." The tyrant briefly glanced at the prince, amusement on his face. "He will be the first to tell you though that the only one who gets special titles around here is me." The threat was barely veiled through his false politeness. Trunks took another deep breath, the stress of the situation making his heart race as Frieza looked back to him. "What planet are you from, boy?"

"I don't know its name," Trunks lied. "I just asked Vegeta if I could join his group because I am half Saiyan."

All shreds of amusement immediately disappeared from Frieza's face at the teenager's words. The alien's white face seemed to darken entirely with hatred. "You monkeys are like cockroaches. You simply refuse to die," Frieza sneered with murderous venom in his voice, eyeing Trunks with much more scrutiny than before. Trunks was clenching and unclenching his fists, trying his best to remain as calm as possible so his power level wouldn't skyrocket and blow his cover.

It was absolutely infuriating to the teenager to know that he could blow this alien up to pieces, but that he couldn't follow through. It would have been completely different if he had gone back in time the twenty years he was originally supposed to. Frieza had been fated to die during that time by Goku's hand on Earth. Trunks would have gladly stepped in and taken Frieza out then; it would have made little difference at that point. But to take him out _now_ would mean that the epic struggle between the alien tyrant and Goku on Namek that his mother had told him about would never happen. That battle _needed_ to happen to push Goku to his limits so he could make his legendary ascension. Trunks needed Goku at his absolute best if he was going to make any kind of difference at all when the androids arrived. The teenager felt helpless as he struggled to contain the growing urge from deep inside to kill Frieza.

"Should just wipe them all out right now," Dodoria suggested in a low voice. Trunks narrowed his eyes, his gaze shifting to the pink alien. His heart was pounding furiously in his chest now. Was he going to inadvertently instigate a war here just by his mere presence in this time?

"Calm yourself, Dodoria," Frieza said slowly, the muscles in his face relaxing as he chuckled. "If Vegeta wants to have another…pet, then he can have him. Arrange for the boy to sleep with them in their chambers. Have to keep all my little monkeys in their cage," Frieza said as he smirked.

Behind him, Trunks could hear Vegeta hiss furiously and Nappa growl in response.

"It doesn't seem like _the_ _prince_ likes that very much, Lord Frieza," Zarbon said as he snickered in amusement.

"Well I think the prince should be very, very careful, because he's done a few things that _I_ don't like very much," Frieza responded, his face darkening as his eyes shifted away from Trunks to the still-kneeling Saiyan a few feet behind him. Vegeta instantly tensed, his eye beginning to twitch. "I'm done speaking to you, boy," Frieza said, waving off Trunks as if he was nothing but an annoying toddler while keeping his eyes locked on Vegeta. "Stand back now. I need to have a few words with my _favorite_ little monkey over there."

Trunks hesitantly took a small step back, not liking the look in the tyrant's eyes as he looked at his father. Trunks glanced at Vegeta who, though showing absolute respect with the position he was in, was showing nothing but absolute hatred in his eyes as he stared defiantly back at Frieza. Trunks opened his mouth to speak, to draw the attention back to himself and away from his father. Finally, he sputtered, "Lord Frieza," he said, hating the words as soon as he said them. The tyrant narrowed his eyes and looked back at the teenager in disinterest and boredom. "If this is about me, it was _my_ idea to join Vegeta and his group. If-if it was up to him, I wouldn't be here-"

"Interesting," Frieza interrupted, his tone cold. "The boy is trying to protect you, Vegeta." The tyrant shifted his dark eyes back to the prince. "How _very_ interesting…"

"I didn't realize you required protection, Vegeta," Zarbon said with a snicker.

Trunks had barely realized his mistake when he felt a hand roughly grasp a fistful of his lavender hair. The teenager winced before Vegeta threw him back violently with one hand and a vicious snarl. Trunks landed on the floor only a few feet away from Nappa, who gave him a disapproving look.

"I fight my own battles, boy," Vegeta sneered, looking over his shoulder at Trunks with disgust. The teenager sat up to watch his father turn back to face Frieza. Not for the first time, Trunks wished he would wake up from this nightmare. Dodoria grinned widely at the display as Zarbon chuckled, smirking. Frieza's face held no amusement at all.

"Tell me something, Vegeta," Frieza said, his expression hard as he stared at the Saiyan Prince. "What is the _real_ reason you brought this boy here?"

The fingers on Vegeta's right hand all seemed to twitch involuntarily, before he clenched both hands up into tight fists. He stared right back at the tyrant showing no signs of fear, though the tension in his body was giving his anxiety away. He took a moment to choose his words carefully, before finally saying, "I think the boy has potential-"

"Ah ah ah," Frieza said, raising one finger and waving it a little in warning. "I did not ask for your lies, my little monkey. I asked for the truth."

"That _is_ the truth," Vegeta affirmed with conviction.

"You disappoint me, Vegeta," Frieza said, sighing deeply. "After everything I've done for you, you can't even be honest with me. I favor you so much, and this is how I am repaid…" the tyrant closed his eyes and shook his head in fake sadness and regret. Trunks grit his teeth, seeing what was happening and wondering if he could stand to watch. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Nappa bristling with barely contained fury.

Vegeta said nothing, just stared back with his face void of emotion. Only a muscle flexing near his jaw every few seconds betrayed his rising rage.

"Does it have to do with the events of last week?" Frieza asked curiously. The tension visibly tightened through Vegeta's body at the question. "You have not taken care of the problem, have you, Vegeta?" Frieza asked dangerously, framing his question more like a statement.

"It's only a minor problem, Lord Frieza," Vegeta asserted, his voice confident. "Nothing to worry about."

"I am not so sure. You have had people target you before, and none have been quite as… _persistent_ as your newfound enemy. Must I summon the Ginyu Force…?" Frieza asked, annoyance and impatience laced in his voice.

"No," Vegeta immediately replied, scowling. "That will not be necessary. I will handle it personally."

"I recall telling you to take care of this when the issue first came up," Frieza stated in a dark tone, before turning his head towards Zarbon. "Unless my memory fails me?"

"No, Lord Frieza," Zarbon said with a smug smile. "You told the monkeys to take care of their little problem when it first surfaced several weeks ago."

"And my orders were blatantly ignored," Frieza said in mock astonishment, shaking his head again and closing his eyes as he sighed. "How utterly disappointing."

"My men and I have been too busy following _your_ orders to purge planets to have any spare time to deal with this _little problem_ ," Vegeta replied bitterly. Trunks looked over at Nappa again, not sure what was going on. The other Saiyan was looking down with his eyes closed, a vein visibly pulsing on his temple.

Frieza opened his eyes and looked at Vegeta in amusement. "My my…" he sneered. "First you arrogantly ignore a direct order from me for weeks, then you find yourself a boy with Saiyan blood and immediately recruit him to join your side without getting my permission first, and now you speak to me with deliberate disrespect. You are treading on thin ice, Saiyan."

"Lord Frieza, my deepest apologies," Vegeta said, closing his eyes and bowing in respect. His tone and action seemed so completely genuine that Trunks would have bought it completely, if he hadn't noticed the slow trickle of blood dripping from his father's white gloves to the floor. Vegeta was clenching his fists so tightly that his nails were ripping through the fabric of his gloves and into the skin of his palms. "I will take care of the problem at once."

"You are fortunate I like you so much, my little monkey," Frieza said with a sinister smirk. "Anyone else would be dead by now."

"Yes, Lord Frieza," Vegeta replied almost mechanically as he straightened. The blood kept dripping.

"Take care of the problem immediately, Vegeta," Frieza ordered. "Zarbon will give you and your fellow monkeys another assignment tomorrow. I've had my eye on a nice little planet that we can get a handsome ransom for, but it must be purged first."

"Unless that's too much for you monkeys to handle," Zarbon chuckled.

Vegeta's eye twitched as he turned to look at Zarbon. "It's not too much for us _Saiyans_ to handle," the prince snarled venomously.

"Temper, _temper_ , my little monkey!" Frieza said as he laughed maniacally. "And do keep your newfound pet in place, Vegeta. If he steps out of line, I will kill him and then make you wish I had killed _you_ instead," the alien tyrant said with false politeness that sent a chill down Trunks' spine. Vegeta gave a brief nod in understanding. "That is all I have to say about the monkey mutt you found," Frieza said with disinterest.

Vegeta gave a nod and immediately spun on his heel and walked back in quick strides as Trunks and Nappa rose up to their feet. Trunks let out a deep sigh of relief that no physical confrontations had happened, willing his pounding heart to slow down when Frieza suddenly said, "I don't recall dismissing you _,_ Vegeta." Vegeta stopped walking as Trunks gazed at him with apprehension. The prince had his eyes squeezed shut, his face a mixture of deep shame and murderous hatred. "Just because I have decided to be merciful and not kill you, does not mean I will let your insubordination slide. You need to be reminded of your _place_ , my precious little monkey," Frieza remarked in a cold voice.

Trunks was so preoccupied looking between the alien tyrant and his father that he didn't notice Dodoria and Zarbon until both aliens were right in front of him and Nappa.

"Time for you to leave," Zarbon said with an evil smirk. "Don't want you two getting in Lord Frieza's way."

Trunks didn't know whether to feel grateful that he wouldn't have to watch, or horrified because he was part of the reason his father was about to be punished by Frieza. Vegeta looked at him for a moment then glanced at Nappa, scowling. Behind him, Frieza was slowly standing up from his seat.

Zarbon shoved Trunks violently back, surprising the teenager. Trunks regained his balance at the last moment, his eyes furious as he glanced from Zarbon to Frieza and back to Zarbon. "I won't repeat myself," Zarbon threatened dangerously.

Nappa's eyes met Vegeta's and after a moment, Nappa turned to look at Trunks. "Let's get out of here, kid," Nappa muttered, turning around after giving Dodoria a hateful glare. Trunks gave his father a glance before very reluctantly turning and heading after Nappa.

"Let them stay," Frieza said suddenly, making Vegeta flinch. Trunks stopped walking and looked back over his shoulder hesitantly. "I want them to see their… _prince_ …for what he truly is."

"As you command, Lord Frieza," Zarbon and Dodoria both said at the same time. Trunks felt numb as Dodoria seized him from behind and forced him down to his knees.

"Let go of me, you freak!" Nappa shouted as Zarbon did the same to him. Zarbon just chuckled and put an arm around the large Saiyan's neck.

"I suggest you be quiet, unless you want to join him," Zarbon stated calmly.

Trunks watched as Vegeta turned to face Frieza again. The scene played out almost like in slow motion as he watched in horror as Frieza raised a finger, pointing directly at Vegeta. A reddish hue immediately surrounded his father and Vegeta instantly dropped to his knees, his eyes shut in pain as he bit down on his lip so hard he drew blood.

Frieza snickered, smirking, "I'll make you scream yet, my little monkey… _then_ we'll see just how eager you are to ignore my orders."

The tyrant then flew at Vegeta with dangerous speed and punched him hard in the stomach, so hard that blood flew out of the Saiyan's mouth as soon as contact was made. Vegeta hadn't even completely doubled over yet before Frieza viciously drove his elbow down onto his back, forcing the prince down to the floor with such ferocity that the marble floor broke with the impact, dust immediately rising. Vegeta gave a loud cry of pain at the impact, a cry that resonated through his horrified son. The teenager's blue eyes simmered with hatred and tears of frustration when he saw his father's body trembling from sheer agony.

Trunks saw Frieza nonchalantly grab Vegeta's tail and unwrap it from around his waist as the prince tried in vain to crawl away. Vegeta was gasping from the pain in his back, unable to control his legs enough after the shot to his back to get them to cooperate with his futile attempt to escape. The teenager saw Frieza raise his other hand to the tail, and he instinctively shouted, "No, _don't_!"

Frieza was about to break the tail when he looked over at Trunks in surprise. He smirked at him, "Look here, Vegeta. Your pet is worried about you. Doesn't he know though? You belong to me, my sweet little Saiyan monkey," he said with pure, chilling delight. With one hand, the alien gently and slowly stroked the Saiyan's tail from the tip all the way down to its base, tightening his grip there as Vegeta furiously reached back in vain to try to get his tail away.

Trunks turned his head away and closed his eyes shut tightly, before hearing Vegeta release a gut-wrenching scream of pure agony as Frieza broke his tail bone near the base of his tail. The scream was so loud that it seemed to echo in the room. Zarbon and Dodoria both laughed as Trunks fought to keep his tears at bay.

 _I know he gets through this, Frieza doesn't kill him, I know he doesn't, he gets through this, he gets through this…_ Trunks kept repeating to himself, not opening his eyes and trying to block out the horrific sounds his ears were registering. His father's screams filled the room, each with worse pain than the last. Through it all, he could hear Frieza laughing as if he was having the time of his life. He heard stone and marble breaking for what seemed like an eternity to the teenager. He felt Dodoria's rough hand suddenly grab his hair and turn his head straight forward.

"Watch, boy," Dodoria commanded before laughing. "Watch your beloved prince get his." Trunks refused to open his eyes though his body was trembling with rage, his teeth grinding together. His only consolation was that the tyrant didn't mean to kill his father, but even that was nothing but a thin shred of restraint that was dangerously close to snapping. If he opened his eyes, he would lose his control and kill them all. He knew it, he could feel it.

Frieza eyed the Saiyan who was laying facedown in a pile of broken marble. He then reached down and grabbed Vegeta by the hair, lifting his head up from the floor and forcing him to arch his back. The Saiyan was mostly unconscious now, his vision fading in and out as he choked on his blood, but he instinctively raised a weak hand up to Frieza's. Frieza just laughed and easily brushed his hand away. He was going to give the prince one last hit for good measure when a light flickered on the red screen of his scouter.

Frieza turned his head in curiosity, his eyes settling on Trunks. His expression darkened and he released Vegeta, who unceremoniously fell face-first back into the rubble again. The Saiyan hacked and coughed, spitting up blood as he slipped in and out of consciousness from the brutal beating. Frieza straightened and crossed his arms, completely forgetting about what he was doing as he stared at Trunks.

"How interesting," the tyrant said in amusement, his tail waving back and forth behind him in intrigue. "You truly are powerful for your age, boy," Frieza remarked as he smirked. "Tell me. Does Vegeta know that you're more powerful than he is?"

Trunks said nothing, struggling to contain his hatred lest he do something he would regret. Frieza just laughed in delight. "Oh, how _very_ interesting. I look forward to you telling him. There is nothing I would like more than seeing two monkeys put on a good show for me. Though I have to tell you, I'd bet on Vegeta in that one. My my…" Frieza sighed as he looked around the now damaged room. "What a mess I've made here. Zarbon, Dodoria," he commanded.

"Yes, sire," they both replied in unison.

"I have more important issues I must address. Come, let's let the monkeys clean up after themselves."

"Should I have a rejuvenation chamber prepared for Vegeta, Lord Frieza?" Zarbon asked as he let go of Nappa.

"No," Frieza said as he slowly walked towards the doors. "Tomorrow. I want him to remember his lesson for the rest of today to ensure he doesn't repeat his mistakes."

Trunks let his body relax just a small amount, knowing that the torture was finally over when Dodoria let him go. Nappa was already kneeling next to Vegeta as Trunks got up and immediately went over to see. His heart sank when he reached his father.

Vegeta was lying face down amidst a pile of broken marble, having clearly been thrown into (and partially through) the wall. His green scouter was crushed and broken a few feet away. His body was twitching ever so slightly, blood trickling down from his broken nose and out of his mouth. His uniform was ripped and torn, half of his shoulder pads ripped completely off. There was blood in his hair and throughout his uniform. His tail, which Trunks had only ever seen wrapped around his waist, was sticking straight out awkwardly as if someone had shocked him. He was wheezing, his eyes fluttering, one arm near his ribs as Trunks slowly knelt down on the other side of him, across from Nappa. The teenager felt like vomiting at the sight of his father like this.

Trunks placed a gentle hand on his father's shoulder before hearing someone growl. He looked up at Nappa who was glaring furiously at him.

"You lied to us about your power, boy," Nappa said angrily. "Do you know what Vegeta will do when he finds out?"

"Nappa," Trunks pleaded, "We don't have to tell him."

"I am not going to lie to him," Nappa shot back indignantly. "I have never lied to Vegeta before, and I won't start now over some runt like you. Now get your damn hands off the prince, you half-breed rat!"

"Look, I'm not saying let's lie to him," Trunks argued desperately, hoping he could wear the man down. "It's not lying if you just… omit the truth."

"Why shouldn't I tell him?" Nappa demanded, his eyes examining Vegeta's damaged tail. The large Saiyan cringed, his own tail instinctively tightening around his waist.

"Because I'm on your side, I can help you. Let's just keep this between us," Trunks insisted, his blue eyes practically begging Nappa now. Yes, he was well aware of what would happen if Vegeta found out that another Saiyan was stronger than him, judging from his father's infamous rivalry with Goku that his mother had once told him about. And with him being a hybrid Saiyan, that would only make things worse.

They both looked down when Vegeta groaned painfully. The prince squeezed his eyes shut before hacking up phlegm filled with blood. Nappa lightly placed a comforting hand on the Saiyan's back. He looked back up at Trunks hesitantly. "I swear it, I won't betray you guys," the teen said with pure conviction in his voice. "Besides, he'll surpass me soon enough anyways," Trunks added, starting to sweat now. He was thankful he hadn't fully let his emotions get the best of him, but he had still slipped and let his power level increase far too much.

Nappa just grunted before grumbling, "Just help me with him, kid."

Trunks nodded, and let out a sigh of relief. Together, they both gingerly turned Vegeta so he was on his side. The prince groaned but gave no resistance at all when Trunks and Nappa finally lifted him up in the best way to not cause him more pain. Nappa was gripping the edge of the armor over Vegeta's shoulders, letting Vegeta's head and neck rest against his own armor. Trunks had his arms hooked under Vegeta's knees, holding his father's legs against his sides. They carried his limp body out like this, being mindful not to let his injured tail touch the floor. Nappa walked backwards, his head turned over his shoulder as he led them the right way to their chambers. Trunks couldn't take his eyes off his father's bruised, bloodied, unconscious face; the only time he had seen worse was when he found Gohan's broken body lying in the rain.

They walked in silence, ignoring the snickers around them. After a while, Vegeta's face contorted into a painful grimace.

"Fa-" Trunks started to say, before swallowing. Nappa looked back at him briefly in confusion. "Erm, farther still?" Trunks recovered.

"Yeah, we're almost there. Our chambers are the furthest away," Nappa said, not sensing the teenager's anxiety over his near-slip. Trunks eyed Vegeta who was stirring. He felt his father weakly try to move his legs against him, his eyes fluttering.

"Nappa, he's waking up," Trunks said. Nappa stopped walking and looked down at Vegeta who was indeed coming out of it. The prince opened one eye painfully, his eye starting to swell.

"Put, me, down, fools," Vegeta hissed furiously, wheezing as he grimaced. He blinked as blood ran into his eyes, closing them shut. Nappa and Trunks made eye contact, and Nappa nodded to Trunks to obey. Trunks bit his lip and hesitantly lowered Vegeta's legs to the floor. Nappa held onto his armor, single-handedly holding the prince up on his feet as Vegeta leaned against the larger Saiyan in pure exhaustion.

"Vegeta, your tail will hurt if you walk," Nappa told him, knowing his words would fall on deaf ears. Vegeta took a few shaky breaths, before roughly shoving Nappa back away from him. The prince dropped to one knee, raising a hand to the wall next to him, his other arm going to his ribs. Trunks couldn't bear it anymore and grabbed Vegeta's arm that he was using to lean against the wall.

"You need help," Trunks said, his blue eyes filled with concern. He didn't see Nappa shaking his head at him. "Let us help you," the teen said urgently. The prince grunted and allowed Trunks to help him back up to his feet. As soon as Vegeta regained his balance and felt mildly steady, he snarled and elbowed Trunks so hard in the face that he knocked the scouter right off him. Trunks didn't see it coming at all and he fell down, holding his nose which was now gushing with blood.

"Don't, need, help, im, im, imbecile," Vegeta choked out hatefully, wheezing. Favoring his left side, Vegeta slowly began limping away under his own power, using his other forearm to wipe the blood off his face. Trunks sat up, wincing as he held his nose as Nappa shook his head.

"Tried warning you, kid," Nappa told him. He shook his head again, before offering Trunks his hand. Trunks looked at it in surprise, but took it. Nappa effortlessly helped the teen back up to his feet.

"Thanks," Trunks said gratefully.

"Don't mention it, just remember what you said," Nappa said, squeezing Trunks' hand with more force than was necessary. Trunks nodded, and they both turned their attention back to Vegeta who had only advanced a few feet. Trunks stopped just briefly to pick up his scouter, slipping it back on.

Trunks wiped the blood off his own face and with Nappa, followed closely behind his father who was walking extremely slowly. Vegeta was soaked in sweat and blood, his body still trembling with pain, but he refused to vocalize his pain any more than he already had. Every few steps, the prince would stop and reach out to the wall to steady himself so he wouldn't fall. Trunks watched how hard it was for his father just to breathe, much less walk. Pure admiration filled his chest over his father's phenomenal willpower.

"You can't keep picking and choosing which of his orders to follow, Vegeta," Nappa finally said in a hushed tone. "You're going to try his patience and he's going to kill you one day."

Vegeta laughed a bitter laugh, before dropping to one knee. He grimaced as tremors racked his body, feeling cold sweat breaking out. He reached back with a shaking hand and gingerly touched his backside a few inches from his tail. He hissed in pain, pulling his hand back, the shaking in his hand worse now. Trunks winced, aching to help him. "He, won't," Vegeta finally wheezed, one eye shut in pain. "I, a-amuse, him."

"Yeah, you amuse him when he's beating the hell out of you," Trunks suddenly cut in as Vegeta stood back up. He continued limping slowly, his right hand lightly trailing the wall.

"I, want, it," Vegeta breathed out with difficulty, before suddenly bursting out into loud laughter filled with unhindered insanity. The laughter rang in the air before he suddenly dropped back down to one knee and promptly vomited. It was mostly blood as his tremors grew worse. Trunks grimaced in horror and tried touching the prince's shoulder when Nappa grabbed his hand before he could. The large Saiyan shook his head, warning him. Trunks looked at him in frustration, before looking down at his father who was slowly getting back up to his feet.

"Are you crazy? Look at yourself!" Trunks hissed. "How could you possibly want this pain?"

Vegeta growled angrily, and Nappa decided to cut in as he looked at Trunks pointedly. "Saiyans grow stronger when they recover from a fight. Once Vegeta is healed, he'll be more powerful."

"Yes," Vegeta said as he continued to limp down the hall. He could see the door to their chambers now. So close. Just a little further. "Only, strength, m-matters," he wheezed.

Trunks' eyes grew large at the realization. "You purposely set yourself up for this…"

Vegeta just gave him a pained smirk over his shoulder. "No, but, what-whatever, it, takes, kid."

"Whatever it takes? What are you talking about?" Trunks asked in exasperation, hating the pain his father was in. "What could possibly be worth this?"

"Re, revenge, f-for, our, p-people," Vegeta wheezed painfully, finally putting his hand on a scanner and not noticing the floored teenager behind him. Trunks was shaking his head in sheer disbelief, deeming his father officially insane as a door opened up.

Vegeta took a few shaky steps inside, and once he heard the door close behind Nappa and Trunks, his eyes rolled back into his head and he finally collapsed in complete exhaustion. Raditz was instantly there though and caught the unconscious prince under his arms before he fell to the floor, looking down at him with confusion but with no surprise. His jaw clearly healed, he looked up at Nappa, completely ignoring Trunks. " _Now_ what did he say to Frieza?"

"Surprisingly, not much," Nappa said, brushing past Trunks and grabbing Vegeta's legs out from under him. The two Saiyans carried him and gently laid him face down on a cot in the room. Vegeta groaned lightly but didn't move from where they laid him as Trunks felt sick to his stomach.

"You…you mean, this happens _often_?" Trunks asked quietly.

Raditz scoffed, looking over his shoulder at Trunks in disdain. "Yes. It should be _you_ like this, kid, not Vegeta," he remarked hatefully.

Trunks looked away uncomfortably, his eyes quickly taking in the room around him. There wasn't much to take in. It was small and dark with a small light in the corner. There were three cots in the room aside from the one Vegeta was laying in, and that was it. No pillows, no sheets, just raised white slabs. Vegeta's was the one closest to the door, and he figured the next one was Nappa's since the large man sat down on it with a heavy sigh. The cot didn't give at all under the large man's weight; he looked like he might as well have been sitting on a table.

"Frieza's been beating our brains in for years, kid," Nappa said bitterly as he removed his scouter. "Vegeta's always had it worse though. He used to get these types of beatings at least once a day when he was a kid. He would mouth off a lot and it took Frieza a long, _long_ time to beat that out of him…" the Saiyan let his words trail off as he scowled deeply.

"How long have you guys been living here?" Trunks said as he looked at his father anxiously. The prince's tail was still sticking straight out awkwardly and his breathing was harsh, blood still trickling down his face and body. Trunks looked closer and saw old, faded blood stains on the floor near the "cot" his father was resting on. Fresh blood dripped down from Vegeta's fingertips on his right arm, which he had draped over the side of the cot. The old blood stains on the floor were being covered with new ones. Trunks clenched his fists at the sight of his father like this, half-tempted to stick around long enough to wait out Goku's future battle against Frieza on Namek, so _he_ could finish off Frieza himself. Once Goku made his ascension, there was little purpose for Frieza to live a second longer.

"Too long," Raditz said, standing over Vegeta as he studied his injuries with intense eyes. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Since Vegeta was a small boy."

"This is insanity," Trunks remarked, shaking his head in utter disbelief. He slowly crouched down before sitting down completely, laying his head back against the door. "This is just, I…" his voice trailed as he shook his head almost in despair.

"This is nothing, half-breed," Raditz sneered, eyeing Trunks with bitter eyes. "Vegeta would prefer a physical beating compared to other things Frieza is capable of, let me tell you. Frieza didn't even hurt him as much as he usually does."

"Yep… though ya better stay out of his way tomorrow after he heals in the rejuvenation chamber, kid," Nappa said with a snicker as he started unlacing his large boots. "He's going to want to kill anything that moves. Including you."

"Did the freak say when our next assignment is?" Raditz asked, looking back down at Vegeta for a moment before walking around to the cot next to Nappa, ignoring Trunks as he did. The teenager didn't even notice, his head down and his eyes on the floor, his hair hanging in his eyes.

"Zarbon will tell us tomorrow. Another purging assignment. It'll be perfect for Vegeta," Nappa chuckled as he removed his armor while Raditz laid down on his cot, crossing his arms behind his head. Trunks frowned and finally looked up in confusion.

"What was that _little problem_ Frieza kept talking about?" the teenager asked curiously.

Nappa and Raditz shot each other a look, before they both turned to look at him. "We have an enemy who is causing us hell. Their grief isn't with Frieza or any of his other soldiers. They only want us four here," Nappa explained.

"They want us dead, you mean," Raditz sneered.

"Yeah, they want us dead… _especially_ Vegeta. They hate Saiyans, and we're the only ones left." Raditz growled indignantly at Nappa's words.

"Kakarot is still alive, and he is probably still on the planet he was sent to. He could help us," the long-haired Saiyan argued.

"You need to let that go already, Raditz," Nappa growled. "You're driving Vegeta crazy with the talk about Kakarot. Do you _want_ him to break your jaw again?"

"I am just saying we could always use more hands," Raditz shot back.

"We have them, we found this kid," Nappa snickered as he motioned to Trunks with his chin. "Anyways, there is no way Vegeta would ask for help with this. He already refuses to think they're even a problem, so we haven't dealt with them yet. That's why Frieza was so pissed."

"Who are they?" Trunks asked, looking at his father out of the corner of his eye when a shudder went through the older Saiyan's body. Vegeta coughed harshly, blood coming out of his mouth as he groaned. Trunks narrowed his eyes in concern, starting to get up. "Hey, should we do something for him?" he asked worriedly.

"Not unless you want Vegeta to kill you," Raditz said with a smirk. "I say go for it. Live dangerously, kid."

Nappa laughed as Trunks shot them glares, before looking down at his father. Very reluctantly, the teenager turned away from him and headed towards the last cot at the far end of the room. He sat down on it and it felt like he might as well have been sitting on stone. "You didn't tell me who this new enemy is," Trunks finally remarked as he started sliding his armor up over his own head.

"Who said it's a new enemy?" Nappa asked bitterly. Trunks looked confused at the comment and was going to ask more, when Raditz reached up and snapped his fingers. The light immediately turned off.

"Enough talk, kid," Raditz growled impatiently. "If we wake up Vegeta with our talking then he's going to be pissed, and I'd like a few days to pass before he breaks another body part of mine."

Nappa chuckled in the dark. "Don't worry kid, you'll find out soon enough."

Trunks sat quietly in the dark, hearing the Saiyans breathing as Nappa and Raditz's breathing slowly started to even out. After some time, one of them started snoring, followed soon by the other, sleep coming easily to them. Through the snoring, Trunks could hear his father wheezing and every so often coughing roughly. The sound of Vegeta in pain kept Trunks awake for what seemed like hours, and the rock hard thing he was laying on wasn't helping either.

 _And I thought_ my _life was hard…_ Trunks thought guiltily, sighing and finally closing his eyes.

Mercifully, sleep wasn't as far off as he had thought.


	5. Trapped

A sudden impact rudely startled Trunks right out of his sleep, pain instantly flaring up in his stomach. He gasped and rolled to his side, his body aching and sore from the miserable excuse of a cot he had slept on. He clutched his stomach and blinked with bleary eyes as he looked around the dimly lit room, wondering what the hell just hit him.

When he saw a large man with Saiyan armor standing over him wearing a red scouter, he got his answer.

"Morning, sunshine," Raditz said, snickering when Trunks shot him a glare. Raditz smirked when he saw it. "What? Don't like my wake up call, kid?"

"How do you guys _sleep_ on these things?" Trunks asked as he pulled himself up so he was sitting. He winced from his aching muscles. "They're rock hard."

"You're a soldier in Frieza's army now, half-breed. Grow a set of balls and act like one," Raditz sneered.

Trunks just scowled at him as he shifted so he was sitting on the edge of his cot. He reached over and picked up his discarded armor off the floor, bringing it up to his lap and sighing. He had slept with his black suit and boots on, having only discarded his scouter, gloves, and armor. His gloves and armor were stained with Vegeta's blood from having helped carry him, and it made him feel sick to see the reminders of that beating. He felt dirty from it and it made him sorely ache for a shower.

He looked up sheepishly at Raditz. "I don't suppose there's anywhere I can take a bath here, is there?"

"Look, this isn't fairy tale land and you're not a little princess. You should've thought harder about joining us if you didn't have the backbone for it, boy," Raditz snapped, before crossing his arms over his chest. Trunks frowned and brought his armor over his head, pulling it down into place before reaching for his gloves. "Now, if you're done bitching, we need you to take Vegeta to a rejuvenation chamber. Me and Nappa have to go get briefed by Zarbon on our next assignment."

Trunks blinked and quickly put his gloves on, before grabbing his scouter. He stood up as he put the red scouter over his left eye, moving around Raditz. Sure enough, Vegeta was still lying where he had been the night before. Trunks had thought for sure that he would already be recovering when he woke up. His blue eyes quickly scanned the room for Nappa, but the Saiyan was nowhere to be seen. Trunks shot Raditz a quick glare, "I can't believe this! How haven't you guys taken him yet?" he demanded angrily, before going over to see his father.

"Oh quit your whining, kid," Raditz said as he rolled his eyes. "Zarbon only now gave the okay."

Trunks studied Vegeta with concerned eyes. His father's skin was pale and sweaty, and he was shivering. His nose was swollen and bent awkwardly and was a dark red. He was coated in dry blood, and Trunks realized with dismay that there was still a trickle of fresh blood coming down his face, clearly coming from his scalp. The teenager put a gentle hand on his father's shoulder, sighing quietly. Vegeta opened one bloodshot eye a little when Trunks touched him, his eye hazy as he reached up with one hand to try to brush Trunks away. Raditz laughed when he saw the motion. Trunks furiously looked over his shoulder at him in response.

"Don't sleep on Vegeta, kid. Even like he is, he'll kick your ass. Anyways, get him over there fast, kid. The more he's in pain, the more he'll want to cause some pain once he's better," Raditz said with a snicker. "Now just make a left and it will be the second door on the right. Someone should be in there that'll know what to do."

Trunks said nothing as he heard Raditz leave. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath when he heard the door close, before grimacing. The smell of Vegeta's blood made him feel nauseated. He took a moment to get his resolve back, before opening his eyes and looking down at his father. Vegeta looked like he had barely survived a horrific car wreck.

 _Actually, a car wreck would probably be a mercy compared to this,_ Trunks thought solemnly as he gently grabbed Vegeta's arm. He put his other arm around his side, and as gently as he could, he pulled his father off the cot. Vegeta groaned and winced as Trunks single-handedly held him up on his feet. The teen put one of his father's arms over his own shoulders and put one of his arms around Vegeta's waist to steady him, being extremely mindful of his injured tail. Vegeta leaned heavily against him, his body trembling and practically dead weight. Trunks was impressed that he still had the wherewithal to walk a little, even though he was practically out on his feet.

Vegeta raised his head a little when he heard the door opening as they exited their personal chambers. He growled, his voice pained and raspy as he spoke, "Kid…don't…n-need…"

"Yeah, I know, you don't need help," Trunks responded kindly with a small smile. "I'm just making sure you walk in the right direction."

Vegeta turned his head a little towards Trunks curiously, before mumbling under his breath. Trunks was relieved that the argument he was anticipating never came.

Finally, he reached the room. He was grateful when the door opened automatically, slowly stepping inside with his father. Trunks glanced around curiously as a purple alien wearing black armor and a green scouter curiously strode over to him.

"So you're the new kid everyone's talking about," the alien said, drawing Trunks' attention. Trunks frowned at him, his coloring reminding him of the slaughter he witnessed when he first joined the Saiyans.

"Guess so," Trunks replied in a guarded tone.

"You don't look like any Saiyan I've ever seen," the alien said with a chuckle, before looking at Vegeta who was blinking slowly and struggling to keep his head up. "Then again, at least you look better than him," he said with a laugh.

Vegeta growled. "Piss…off…Cui…" he choked out, before coughing hoarsely. He winced and leaned more against Trunks, his trembling growing worse.

"Can you help him?" Trunks asked impatiently.

"Yeah, yeah," Cui said in a bored tone as he rolled his eyes, before studying Vegeta more closely. He looked behind him and gave a whistle when he saw his tail. "Man. Bet that one hurt! All right, the pants and boots can stay on. If we try to take the pants off, he'll keel over for sure with his tail like that and then Frieza will have my head. The top's got to go though. The more skin that's exposed, the faster he heals, and the faster I don't have to see his ugly face anymore," he laughed.

Trunks scowled but led his father towards the tank contraption in the center of the room that had the front glass raised. The teenager looked at it with wary eyes as Cui pressed some keys on the control panel for it.

"We're putting him in there?"

"Well, I suppose we don't have to if you'd rather him die instead. I know I wouldn't miss him," Cui said with a chuckle as he turned to them. He grabbed Vegeta's other arm and tugged him along a lot faster than Trunks had been, making Vegeta groan in pain. Trunks grit his teeth but didn't say anything as they sat him down together in the chamber.

Vegeta hissed when Cui tugged his armor off roughly. He started coughing again, hacking up blood in the process. Trunks glared at Cui, who caught his look and snickered. "What are you looking at, kid? Never seen someone handsome like me?"

"Would you watch it, he's not in good shape," Trunks snapped. Vegeta opened his one good eye a little to glance at Trunks with a hint of bewilderment as Cui just burst out laughing and shook his head.

"Good one you found here, Vegeta," Cui said as he continued laughing. Trunks just scowled and decided that maybe working faster wasn't a bad thing if it brought Vegeta relief faster.

Trunks tugged off one of his father's ripped and bloody white gloves, and then was going to do the same with the other when he realized that Vegeta was gripping a tight fist with that hand. He glanced at his father's bruised face but Vegeta was leaning his head forward, his good eye closed as he focused on simply breathing. Trunks narrowed his eyes and looked back down, seeing that Vegeta was holding onto something. Trunks gently tried pulling his father's fingers apart and found little resistance.

Trunks grabbed the item quickly and stuffed it in the top of his own suit under his armor where he was keeping Goku's antidote and his time machine capsule, not bothering to look yet to see what it was. He did it before Cui even noticed. He then easily removed the other bloody glove, before stepping back as Cui roughly ripped off the top of Vegeta's blue torn and bloodied fighting suit. Trunks cringed when he saw the nasty bruising littering Vegeta's body, particularly on his left side. His ribs looked like they were going to cave with every shaky breath the prince took. Trunks sighed and crossed his arms as Cui put a breathing mask on his father and hooked him up to get readouts.

"How long is this going to take?" Trunks asked as Cui stepped out and pressed some keys on the panel.

"Eh, not that long. Vegeta recovers faster than most since he's used to Frieza's beatings. Or he'll just get pissed off and blast his way out," Cui chuckled as the machine came to life. Trunks stepped forward a little, his blue eyes curious as he watched fluid began to rise in the tank. "Saiyan's got a temper that's legendary around here."

"I bet," Trunks said quietly. He watched for a while before turning to Cui. Trunks hesitated for a second, but decided it was worth a shot. "Hey, um…" Cui looked up from the readings he was getting on Vegeta, giving Trunks an annoyed look. Trunks forced himself to continue, "This scouter is acting up a little. I was wondering if you knew where I could find some tools to fix it?"

"Just get a new scouter," Cui said, looking at the teenager like he was an idiot. "Saiyans, they're all stupid, the whole lot of them," Cui muttered under his breath as he turned his attention back to the readouts.

Trunks scowled and figured this was going nowhere. He took a glance at Vegeta, but he looked fine. In fact, the tension had left his body now that he was completely submerged in the fluid of the rejuvenation chamber, and his trembling had finally subsided. The teenager hesitated momentarily, not fully trusting the purple alien before him. But then he recalled him mentioning something along the lines of Frieza being pissed if something happened to Vegeta. Trunks didn't understand that one bit since Frieza was the reason his father was so injured, but he didn't question it either.

The teenager turned and walked out of the room. He took a deep breath and was thinking about where the hell he could go to find some tools when he remembered the thing he had taken out of Vegeta's hand. Making sure there was no one around to see, he pulled it out and curiously examined it.

He was holding what looked like a small broken off piece from a chest plate of armor. It was jagged and about an inch across, and the coloring was an old, worn, pale yellow that betrayed its years. The material was as strong as ever though. Trunks gazed at it in curiosity, wondering why his father would be holding what looked like garbage to him, and where in the world Vegeta had been hiding it. He wiped the blood on it away and turned it over, and his eyes widened.

There was an intricate red design on the piece that Trunks instantly recognized. He reached down the front of his black suit under his armor and pulled out the chain his mother had given him shortly after Gohan's death. He raised the steel pendant at the end of his chain and held the two items side by side. The design engraved on his pendant matched the one engraved and painted red into the small, broken piece of amor…

" _I thought maybe you would want to have this, Trunks."_

" _What is it?"_

" _This is a pendant with the family crest of your father's royal Saiyan lineage. You're Vegeta's son, a prince in your own right. If anyone deserves to have this, it's you."_

_The thirteen-year-old took the chain with the engraved pendant in his hands as if it was made of porcelain. He didn't have anything of his father's except his blood and his features. It was like he had suddenly stumbled upon the world's greatest treasure, and he treated it as such. "Wow… this was really my father's?"_

_Bulma smiled a pained smile. "The chain? Not exactly. I had it made for him, but well… I never got the chance to give it to him…"_

" _I see," he said gently, holding the chain up in admiration. "His royal family crest…" he said in awe._

" _Yours now."_

Trunks stared at the two items a moment longer, before panic hit him as he realized that Vegeta was sure as hell going to notice that the broken piece of armor was no longer near him. He put his chain back under his suit and thought about what he should do next. He decided to put the piece of armor away first and then look for tools. The teenager jogged back to the room the Saiyans all shared and frowned when he saw the scanner to get back in.

 _Damn it,_ he thought to himself. Not knowing what else to do, he decided to just go for it and raised his hand to the scanner.

To his shock, the door opened.

Trunks immediately went over to the cot his father had been laying in, and grimaced in disgust. He put a hand to his mouth and covered his nose, the feeling of nausea coming back with a vengeance at the smell of the blood. The teenager held back a gag, before looking at the small piece of armor that his father had kept for who knew how many years. He put it down on the floor, tucked in the corner. If Vegeta asked, he figured he could say that it fell out of his grip when he helped him to the rejuvenation chamber.

Trunks was turning to leave when he almost ran right into Nappa. Startled, the teenager sat down on Vegeta's cot. Nappa gave him a suspicious look.

"Did I interrupt something, kid?"

"No," Trunks immediately replied, cursing the Saiyan's bad timing.

"Did you get Vegeta to a rejuvenation chamber?"

"Yeah. Some guy named Cui set him up."

Nappa snorted. "That fish face freak talks too damn much. Vegeta is going to kill that guy one day." Trunks just nodded as he silently pondered whether or not to ask Nappa where he could find some tools. "Well, I just wanted to see if you were hungry and wanted to grab some grub, kid." Almost on cue, Trunks' stomach growled. Nappa smirked as the teenager blushed in embarrassment. "Guess that's a _hell yeah_ huh?"

"Um, well, actually," Trunks started as he removed his red scouter and looked down at it. "I think there's something weird with this scouter. Is there somewhere I could maybe find some tools to fix it with?"

Nappa looked down at the scouter, before looking back at Trunks like he was crazy. "Just get a new one, kid. And here I actually thought you were smart," he laughed.

Trunks sighed in defeat. He was resolving to just look on his own for tools when he suddenly realized that if they did have a big supply of scouters, they might have something there that he could use. The teen looked up at Nappa, "Where can I get a new scouter, Nappa?"

"Didn't Vegeta take you to the equipment room to get changed? There are scouters there."

"Great," Trunks said, standing up now. He was pretty sure he remembered where that was. Nappa frowned as he looked at him.

"Don't you want to eat, kid? We probably won't eat for days once we start on our new assignments, which will be as soon as Vegeta's healed and ready to go."

"Oh," Trunks said in realization. "Well, I guess I could eat when Vegeta eats."

Nappa laughed loudly at that before turning and heading towards the door. "If you like bloody body parts, sure. Suit yourself. Vegeta's diet will suit you just fine." Trunks paled a bit at his words, staring after him.

Trunks shook his head, fairly certain that no one would willingly eat _bloody body parts._ Nappa must have just been busting his balls. The teenager hesitated momentarily; now that Nappa had brought up food, his hunger was suddenly overwhelming. He was debating what to do when he realized that if they were eating, then surely there would be some utensils there. Maybe he could take one and salvage it into some kind of tool that he could use.

A split second later, he tore after Nappa.

Nappa snickered when the teenager fell into stride with him. Trunks glanced at him sheepishly.

"I guess I am kinda hungry."

"Well, you do have Saiyan blood," Nappa laughed. Trunks cracked a small smile.

"Yeah, I guess so," he said, looking around him at everyone they were passing by. They walked in silence for a while, before he looked over at Nappa. "Is it always like this?"

"Like what?"

"Just… I don't know…" Trunks struggled to find the words to convey the deadly intense atmosphere of the base. With everyone wearing scouters and armor, it had an incredible military feel that Trunks had never experienced. He realized Raditz wasn't kidding when he referred to it as an army. "It's like everyone wants to kill around here."

Nappa snorted, "Don't worry kid. You'll get used to it."

"How long did it take you to get used to it?" Trunks asked curiously.

"I was the commander of the Saiyan army. This isn't anything new… though the respect could be a hell of a lot better," the Saiyan remarked in a bitter tone. "Well, here we are."

Trunks looked at the room Nappa had led him to. The first thing he thought of was that it looked like an enormous military-style mess hall. There were old, dirty tables filling the room with soldiers of all different shapes, sizes, and races all sitting about while they ate at a near frantic pace. Trunks grimaced a little as he followed Nappa inside. Each table was filled with something that _looked_ like food, and the soldiers were all digging in with their bare hands.

Nappa led him over to a smaller table where Raditz was already sitting on the worn bench type of seating accompanying each table. Nappa took a seat next to Raditz and smirked up at Trunks.

"Dig in, kid," he laughed.

Trunks eyed the food laid out on the table, trying to hide his disgust but not really succeeding as he tried not to gag. It didn't look appealing in the least. It looked like a horse had been slaughtered, skinned, chopped up, then left on the table for a week. On top of the odd-looking meat was a coat of gray slime that looked more like something out of his mother's laboratory than something he should be eating. There was something that looked like a huge square loaf of bread next to the slop, and Trunks was grateful to see something a bit familiar. On the far end of the table was a large bucket. Judging from the other tables and the other soldiers, that was what they had to drink from. Unfortunately, there were no plates, napkins, or cups of any kind.

And worst of all, no utensils he could use.

He sat down quietly across from the Saiyans who were digging in using only their hands, eating like this was a buffet free-for-all. Trunks decided it was best that he breathe through his mouth as he removed his white gloves, putting them down in his lap. He then reached to a small piece of the meat and ripped it off, forcing back a gag when he saw that it was dripping in something that looked an awful lot like blood.

The teenager warily brought it up to his mouth, but his sense of smell protested violently before he could bring it close to his mouth and he put the piece of meat back on the table. He sighed in disappointment as he watched Raditz and Nappa go to town on the miserable excuse of a meal. Raditz just laughed at him with a mouth full of bloody meat.

"The boy's a damn female in disguise," Raditz said mockingly. "Can't even eat like a real man."

Nappa snickered as he ripped off a huge piece of meat and tore into it, while Trunks cringed in disgust. He reached over to the bread to rip a piece of that off, only to find to his dismay that the thing was rock hard.

"Here, kid," Nappa said, surprising Trunks by slamming his fist down on the bread and breaking it into pieces. The Saiyan picked up a piece and tossed it into his mouth, crunching on it like it was a potato chip. Trunks just gave a slow nod of gratitude as he picked up a small piece of the bread. He brought it up and tried eating it. He might as well have been chewing on a brick.

Nonetheless, he forced himself to chew through as he looked around the table. He realized to his surprise that buried under a chunk of rotten looking meat was a small piece of bone. The teen's eyes shot up to the Saiyans sitting across from him, but with the mountain of food between them and with their voracious appetites, they were hardly paying him any attention. Trunks reached over to the piece of bone and with a flick of his wrist, broke it off. He raised it and studied it; it was small, and sharp. Just what he needed.

He put the rock hard bread down on the table and looked around to make sure no one was noticing him. He then pulled out the time machine capsule. He held it in one hand, making his hand into a fist and resting it on the table as he peered up at the Saiyans who were eating. The teenager grabbed the small piece of bread he had been eating with his free hand, and continued chewing on it.

Raditz grabbed the bucket on the table and lifted it, drinking directly out of it as the liquid trickled down the sides of his mouth and onto his armor. Trunks scowled at the display but didn't say anything as Raditz slammed the bucket back down on the table. He noticed Trunks watching him and he gave him a smirk. "Refreshing," he said with a snicker. Trunks said nothing as they continued to eat, losing track of the time.

"So what do you think Vegeta will think about our new assignments?" Nappa asked through a mouthful of food.

"I don't know, but you guys better think of something," Raditz answered. Trunks lowered his eyes to his fist, knowing that they would be suspicious if he got up and left. He silently wondered what to do as Raditz continued, "The first planet won't be a problem but the second one, well, I heard about _that_ planet. Liyana." He scoffed. "It ain't a pushover."

"That's for sure. We might have to wait until we can go Oozaru to take that one over."

Raditz snorted. "Nappa, I know that they're strong, but there is no planet that poses _that_ much of a threat to us. Let's be honest."

"Liyana? You kidding? The Liyans are well respected warriors. They won't lay down and die like the freaks on Dariya. Won't be a typical purge. We'll have to strategize," Nappa said as he motioned for Raditz to pass him the bucket so he could drink.

"It's too damn much," Raditz said in disgust as he reached over and grabbed the bucket with one hand. He shoved it practically in Nappa's face, carelessly, and Trunks noted with repulsion that the fluid splashed over the bucket and onto the "food" they were eating. " _That_ assignment alone is going to give us all we can handle. Then on top of that, we have to purge _another_ planet. AND deal with our favorite friends in the universe hunting us down every chance they get, all by Zarbon's deadline. Fucking hell, man," Raditz growled in frustration. "There are idiots who sit around here doing nothing all day and Frieza assigns us all this crap."

Trunks was tinkering with his time machine capsule under the table, almost successfully jamming the small bone into the small screw holding it together, thankful that the Saiyans were practically ignoring him. He was listening intently though, and his eyes shot up in curiosity. He couldn't help it. He wanted to know. "Who are these enemies that you guys keep talking about anyways?"

"Army of misfits," Nappa replied gruffly. "Led by a man named Ares. He's to them what Vegeta is to us."

"Who is he?" Trunks asked, putting the bone and the time machine capsule right next to him on the bench. He reached out for another piece of bread. It was wreaking hell on his teeth but he needed _something_ in his stomach.

Nappa raised a chunk of meat to his mouth and ripped off a good part of it with his teeth. He chewed roughly and impatiently, his eyes angered. Trunks looked to Raditz, but he was chugging out of the bucket again. Finally, Nappa swallowed and crudely used his forearm to wipe his mouth.

"Ares is the leader of the surviving Tuffles."

"The who?"

Raditz snickered. "Runt doesn't even know his own history. How sad."

Nappa just rolled his eyes and looked over at Trunks. "The Tuffles and the Saiyans once waged a great war over the planet Vegeta. The Saiyans won when they went Oozaru-"

"When they went what?"

"Oh, that's right, he has no tail," Raditz said mockingly. "Of course he doesn't know what that means."

"Oh, you mean the transformation in the moon?" Trunks asked, remembering Gohan telling him about that. Apparently, that had been the only way they could defeat Vegeta when he first arrived on Earth.

"The transformation in the moon," Nappa repeated with a scoff. "Kid, you don't know the power of Oozaru or the connection we Saiyans have with this power. So don't even talk like you know, half-breed!" he growled with sudden anger that startled Trunks.

"Okay, okay," Trunks said as he quieted down.

"Anyways," Nappa continued impatiently, "The Saiyans, our ancestors, went Oozaru and they demolished the Tuffles. Wiped out their pathetic race… or so they thought. Our ancestors didn't know at the time, but there were some Tuffles who were in space when the battle happened. They have been waiting for their revenge for generations and generations now. Since there were only a handful of them, they could do nothing against the powerful Saiyan empire that Vegeta's ancestors created."

"I see," Trunks said patiently, nodding with understanding and enthralled to learn more about his lineage and people.

"Then our planet Vegeta was destroyed, and the surviving Tuffles were thrilled, the little punks. Thought justice had been served. They didn't know that there were Saiyan survivors...us."

"That doesn't include _you_ , half-breed," Raditz cut in. Trunks just nodded quietly as Raditz tore off another piece of meat and tossed it into his mouth.

"They would have never found out about us, but then we were sent on an assignment a long time ago when Vegeta was a kid. We were searching for… what were we searching for?" he suddenly asked, looking over at Raditz who smirked.

"We were searching for a soldier who was conspiring against Frieza. Frieza ordered us to find him and kill him and it brought us straight to the Tuffle survivors. Course we didn't know it at the time. We decided to let Vegeta take the lead on it, since he was just a kid. Thought it'd do him good and it sure did. It didn't take him long to get to the truth of things and find that guy."

"Yeah! That's right. Vegeta sure was impressive for a kid… he made that guy squeal before he blew his head off, the fiery little rascal," Nappa laughed. Trunks tensed, feeling extremely uncomfortable with hearing that his father had been racking up a body count as a child.

"How old was he?" Trunks asked.

"At the time, just under one Saiyan cycle."

"Vegeta was a baby and he was killing someone?" Trunks asked in complete disbelief, assuming a Saiyan cycle was their equivalent of a year.

"Of course he wasn't a baby, idiot. He was just under _one_ cycle, he said," Raditz snapped. Trunks frowned, realizing that of course they wouldn't tell age the same way he did.

"How old is he now?"

"Just turned three not too long ago. When he did, we took the night off and threw a _party_ , kid, let me tell you. The whole damn universe probably heard us with those women that night," Raditz said with a snicker as Nappa laughed.

"Those chicks were fantastic! I've never had such a great lay. Too bad Vegeta got all the good looking ones to himself…" Nappa said with a sigh of disappointment.

"We should've kept them alive after we fucked them. Tough to find whores these days who are that _willingly_ skilled," Raditz said with a smirk that sent chills down Trunks' spine. He ignored the implications they were making and grabbed another chunk of the rock hard bread.

"So would that make me around two cycles old?" he asked curiously, taking a stab to see if he could get a feel for their ages.

Nappa shrugged. "Yeah, you look like you're around two. This one here is four. I'm five."

"Old man," Raditz snickered as Trunks put it all together. He was eighteen, so roughly around twenty; that meant that Vegeta had to be around thirty. It was his best guess anyways from what they had given him, if his assumption that a Saiyan cycle was the equivalent of ten years was correct. He looked at Raditz and Nappa more closely, and found that they both also looked roughly around thirty as well. That must have been their prime age that their bodies held onto for as long as possible.

"Ares?" Trunks finally prompted.

"Oh yeah, that's right," Nappa said as he remembered. "Anyways. Vegeta annihilated this guy and word got back to Ares and his father that the prince of the Saiyans was still alive. They've been hanging in the shadows all this time, two whole cycles, just waiting. Letting us make more and more enemies. Now Ares is their new leader, recruiting our enemies, and they're getting ready for a war."

"Hundreds of them, building up right under our nose," Raditz said as he shook his head. "Last week, they sabotaged our space pods while we were on a surveillance mission for Frieza. Almost killed us with poisoned gas. We barely made it back to base on time and we couldn't finish the other assignment we had. That's why Frieza was so pissed."

"Wait a minute, how long is a week to you guys exactly?"

"Ten risings of the sun here on base. Keep up, kid."

"Hmm… I see. The Tuffles, huh…" Trunks said thoughtfully to himself.

"Rodents," Nappa hissed. "The whole lot of them. Hiding in the shadows like cowards. Won't fight us face-to-face like true men."

"Vegeta doesn't think they're a problem?"

"Vegeta doesn't think a lot of things are problems," Raditz said with a hint of bitterness to his voice. "That usually only leads to him getting hell from Frieza."

Nappa growled, "Damn that freak," he hissed under his voice. He suddenly slammed the table hard with his fist, making practically all of the "food" rise up and plop back down. Trunks scowled and went back to eating his brick bread, contemplating the new information. Absent-mindedly, he reached over with his hand to grab his things so he could hide them down his suit again.

Except, he felt nothing on the bench next to him.

Trying not to show his panic, he glanced over and his heartbeat returned to normal when he saw that the time machine capsule and the small piece of bone had simply fallen off the edge of the bench. He took a deep breath and decided it was too risky. He had to put it all away and deal with it later. Maybe when he was in the space pod and he had actual privacy.

Trunks leaned over to pick it up, when a white boot slammed down on the time machine capsule before he had the chance, breaking it into pieces.

Trunks felt like the boot might as well have slammed into his heart as his mouth suddenly ran dry.

" _You stay out of trouble, Trunks…"_

The dismayed teenager slowly looked up, his blue, pained eyes meeting his father's. Vegeta's gaze was cold, dark, and empty. He was wearing brand new battle armor and a green scouter, his tail now wrapped securely around his waist.

"Miss me, kid?" Vegeta asked, his tone emotionless and his face guarded.

Trunks couldn't find it in him to respond, he was so shocked and completely overwhelmed with a sense of dread and despair like he had never felt before in his entire life. Vegeta didn't give him the chance to even try to compose his thoughts. He snarled and backhanded the teenager hard across the face, knocking him right off the bench seating and sending him to the floor, sending Trunks' scouter flying. Nappa ignored the display while Raditz snickered. Trunks stayed on the floor, wincing from his father's hit and trying to keep his tears at bay.

 _How am I going to go home now?_ he wondered to himself, horrified as he thought of his mother alone with the androids. The despair rushing through him felt like it was going to suffocate him as he struggled to breathe. _They're going to find her, they're going to kill her, and I will never forgive myself… how could I have been so fucking_ stupid!

"Hn. Didn't know I hit that hard. Good to know," Vegeta remarked curiously. He then reached down and grabbed Trunks forcefully by the hair, forcing the teen to raise his head and arch his back much like Frieza had done to him. Vegeta squatted down in front of Trunks and looked into his tearing eyes.

"So you think that was painful, do you, boy?" Vegeta said, pronouncing his question like a statement. His eyes were frightening; Trunks could see almost no sign of sanity there. The teenager absent-mindedly wondered if Frieza had finally broken his father as Vegeta snorted. "Well you're wrong, kid. You don't know shit about what pain really is." Vegeta leaned forward so he was in Trunks' face, his eyes ice cold. "But the next time that you embarrass me in front of Frieza and his lieutenants, I swear to you, boy. I will show you the true meaning of that word when I end your miserable existence and send you to the next dimension."

Vegeta shoved Trunks' head to the side as he stood up and stepped over him. He shoved Trunks' gloves away and sat down in Trunks' place, reaching for some food. Raditz and Nappa didn't engage him in any conversation, neither wanting to try the prince's volatile temper. Vegeta then began eating quietly and with far more dignity and refinement than his Saiyan comrades.

Trunks couldn't move from where he was, his eyes on the crushed capsule only a foot or so away from him. He stared at it for what seemed like a long time, before Vegeta growled, "You're an embarrassment on the floor, boy. Get up immediately before I force you to stay down there permanently."

With a heavy heart, Trunks reached out to the remains of his capsule. He cradled it with the same care that he had once cradled the chain and pendant he wore religiously. With a shaking hand, he put the remains down into his suit where it could be supported by his armor, ignoring a voice telling him that it was no use. He felt as destroyed as the capsule, and he needed it close to him right then.

Trunks sat down numbly next to his father, scouter back on, gripping his hands tightly together under the table. Nappa and Raditz were no longer eating, both of them just waiting patiently for Vegeta to have his fill. Trunks felt like he was barely breathing, just staring blankly at the slaughtered meat in front of him as he wondered hopelessly what he was going to do now.

"Report," Vegeta ordered gruffly after swallowing a mouthful of bloody meat.

"Two planets. One trivial and insignificant. Rithica. The other could be a bigger problem. Liyana," Raditz answered mechanically.

Vegeta just grunted, looking up to Nappa. "Warrior race like us. Not as good though. How serious a problem?"

"I haven't run the updated reports yet but the Liyans do have a reputation of being worthwhile warriors. I thought I'd wait for you. We're going to need a strategy to deal with them."

"News on Ares?" Vegeta asked, motioning for the bucket on the table. Trunks grabbed it with shaking hands and handed it to his father. Vegeta noticed but didn't comment as he took the bucket and tipped it back to drink from. He did it with much more refinement than either Nappa or Raditz.

"None. He's laying low."

Vegeta lowered the bucket to the table, contemplated for a moment, before standing up. "Very well. Let's get it done. Get on a move on, _now_ ," he ordered harshly, fixing all three with a hard, authoritative gaze.

"Yes, Vegeta," Raditz and Nappa both answered as they stood up. They both headed off towards the direction of their space pods, but Trunks remained sitting. Vegeta turned his intense eyes to his son.

"What's the matter, kid? You look down. Is the life of a Saiyan not the grand adventure you were expecting?" Vegeta asked in a deadly threatening tone. Trunks cringed at his words and looked down, his hair falling into his eyes. "Should watch what you ask for, boy. Now move your legs, before I rip them the fuck off. Understand?" Vegeta snarled.

Trunks stood up slowly and followed Vegeta, his head down and tears still in his eyes. His only consolation was that at least he still had the antidote for Goku's heart virus. He could still make a difference. Yes, he could still save the fate of the Earth in this timeline.

Even if he could no longer save it in his own.


	6. Survival Lessons

As soon as the door to his space pod closed, Trunks cursed and slammed his fist into the side wall of the pod out of frustration, leaving a dent. He took off his scouter and let it fall by his feet, before rubbing his eyes with two fingers. The stress, the tension, the atmosphere, it was starting to get to him. His stupidity, more than anything, gnawed at him as he berated himself again and again for his impulsiveness and his lack of patience with his time machine capsule.

"Is there a _problem_ , half-breed?" Raditz's voice said over the sound system. Trunks was startled when he heard it, having forgotten that they could hear each other easily.

"Erm, no, sorry," Trunks replied sheepishly, brushing his lavender hair out of his eyes. His hand involuntarily began to tremble a bit, and he looked at it with wary eyes. The teenager clenched his fist and it went away. He was sweating now, and he wiped his brow with his forearm.

Yeah, it was _definitely_ starting to get to him.

Lights flickering on the control panel of his space pod suddenly caught his attention. The teenager peered out of the oval glass window and could make out Vegeta and Nappa talking as they stood near their space pods. Or rather, Nappa was talking and Vegeta was listening intently, his arms crossed over his chest. As if feeling that he was being watched, Vegeta immediately looked over at Trunks' space pod. Trunks instantly leaned back to get out of sight, glancing down at the controls of his space pod.

His anxiety and despair melted away as he realized that right there, at his fingertips, he had the power to change his course trajectory. If he could just figure out how to set the coordinates for Earth…

His blue eyes narrowed in concentration as he studied the controls. There were various lights, tons of switches, and very little that made any sense to him. Trunks chanced a glance up through his oval window, and just managed to see Nappa's space pod closing after him. Vegeta, though, was still standing where he had been.

And the prince was staring right at him.

Trunks leaned back again, his heart pounding. He looked down at the controls again.

Try his hand at setting coordinates that were likely to fail, or accompany his father on not just one, but _two_ purging missions?

Did he dare?

His hand was shaking again as he reached out to the controls. Trunks frowned and clenched his fist tightly, willing the shaking to stop. He blinked as sweat ran into his eyes, and cursed mentally as he wiped it away with his other hand.

He went for it and pressed a button.

" _Space pod communication system disengaged."_

Trunks blinked and looked around him, as if expecting something else to happen. Nothing else did.

"Raditz?" he asked out loud in a wary voice. He got no response, and tried again. "Nappa? You guys there?"

He got nothing. Trunks' mind began to race, and he finally felt a flicker of hope. If they couldn't hear him, then he could try a verbal command.

"Destination?" he asked curiously.

" _Destination set to: Rithica, galaxy #13 in the north sector."_

His eyes widened; this was his key! Trunks was just opening his mouth to set a new destination when he was shot back into his seat as his space pod took off with its usual acceleration. He grit his teeth as he slowly got accustomed to the acceleration again. Both of his hands were trembling now, and Trunks clenched them tightly. He would have questioned his anxiety more, but he was too preoccupied with this potential opportunity to escape the madness of his father's world.

"Computer, change destination to the planet Earth," the teenager ordered in a firm voice.

" _Authorization to overwrite destination denied."_

"Fuck!" Trunks yelled angrily, slamming his fist down into his thigh. He leaned his head forward into his hands and groaned into them, his elbows on his knees. He brought his hands up into his hair and stayed that way for hours.

 _What do I do?_ he wondered to himself in desperation. He could _not_ actively participate in these purges. To do so would make him a monster just like the androids of his time… Trunks refused to hurt innocent beings just because Frieza wanted him to. The teenager brought his hands down and covered his face with them.

Vegeta was going to order him to do it, and to disobey him would undoubtedly create serious problems. It was either follow his father's orders, or be prepared to fight Vegeta, potentially to the death.

Trunks groaned into his hands again. His father might have been a cold and heartless bastard, but Trunks didn't have it in him to hurt him.

What the hell was he going to do?

" _Destination overwrite set by Vegeta, soldier rank 3,"_ the computer said in its monotone voice, startling Trunks. _"Updating coordinates."_

Trunks looked out of the space pod window, and could see two space pods flying just ahead of his. That assuaged his fear a bit that Vegeta had only changed _his_ pod destination. The teenager sighed and focused on the sights he was seeing to get his mind off what he was going to do next. He was once again blown away by the vastness of the universe. So large, so endless… so much emptiness. Somewhere out there, was a little blue planet with everything Trunks loved.

He made a silent vow that no matter what, he would save that little blue planet.

Finally, hours later, they mercifully landed. Trunks took a deep breath as the door to his space pod opened on a new, strange planet. He had decided that he would go along with the charade of participating in the purges, without actually killing anyone. How he would do this, he wasn't quite sure. But it was worth a shot.

Trunks picked up his scouter and climbed out of his space pod at the same time as Raditz. Nappa and Vegeta were already standing on the new planet, both of them silently looking around, their backs to him. Vegeta looked over his shoulder, his dark eyes surveying the landscape. Trunks saw lights activated and running on his father's green scouter and realized that Nappa and Vegeta were both trying to pick up any signs of a potential threat. Trunks glanced around, but the planet was mostly barren with something like sand under his feet. The sand was actually black. Trunks looked up to the sky, but there was no light from a nearby sun; only the light of the stars illuminated them. The night air was cold, and it chilled Trunks down to his bones.

"All clear," Nappa said, before turning to the smallest Saiyan of the group. "Vegeta, what's up? Why did we stop on this planet?" he asked as Raditz and Trunks walked up to them, the four Saiyans forming a small circle. Vegeta wasn't looking at any of them, staring off into nothing that Trunks could see. Trunks wiped the sweat off his brow as they waited patiently for Vegeta's command.

Finally, the prince grunted and turned to them. He crossed his arms over his chest and began to speak in a relatively patient tone. "We can't do our assignments for Frieza until we get our scouters back online. I stopped here to get it taken care of."

"How, Vegeta?" Raditz said curiously.

"Don't fry your brain thinking about it, Raditz," the Saiyan prince answered with a smirk. "Now then. You and Nappa go and… relax a while." Vegeta shifted his gaze to Trunks and his smirk suddenly turned downright sinister. Trunks shifted uncomfortably when he saw it. "I will take the boy with me, and we will take care of business."

"Aw that's no fun, Vegeta. There's nothing else to do around here," Nappa said in a tone dangerously close to whining as Raditz laughed.

"Come on now big guy, don't tell me you forgot Uvi's tavern on the west end of this planet already," Raditz said with a snicker, slapping Nappa on the back.

"Oh that's _right_!" Nappa laughed, his eyes suddenly bright with excitement. "Hell yeah, let's go right now!"

Vegeta chuckled and shook his head a bit, suddenly reminding Trunks of a father amused by the antics of his children. The teenager cracked a small smile, his heart warming a little at the sight. "You fools are too much," the prince said with clear amusement in his voice. "Go, enjoy yourselves. You will hear me when our scouters are back online."

Raditz laughed as Nappa gave a howl of excitement, before they both blasted off into the air. Trunks watched them fly off, before turning to look at his father. Vegeta was staring at him, his dark gaze as intense as ever. Trunks wiped the sweat off his brow again, feeling extremely uncomfortable under his father's scrutiny.

"So… where exactly are we going?" Trunks asked nervously.

Vegeta studied him for a few more moments, and it took all of Trunks' willpower not to look away. Finally, Vegeta smirked. "There is an individual on this planet who has the intelligence and the ability to reset our scouters' communication ability to _my_ specifications. He owes me a favor and that is the favor I want. He is a… _friend_ ," the prince said, his smirk growing.

Somehow, Trunks seriously doubted that. He nodded anyways. "Which way?"

"This way," Vegeta said, motioning with his head. Trunks waited for Vegeta to take to the air first so he could follow him, but he blinked in surprise when the prince just turned and began walking in the direction he had motioned to.

"We're not flying?" Trunks asked, hurrying up a bit and falling into step next to his father. He blinked as sweat ran into his eyes again. How strange that was when it was so cold on this planet. Must have been his stress. He wiped his sweat away again.

"I want to enjoy the scenery, kid," Vegeta said in a tone Trunks couldn't read. Trunks glanced around, seeing nothing but endless stretches of black sand. He swallowed heavily, wondering if his father had completely lost it.

Suddenly, Vegeta put a hand on his shoulder and roughly shoved him forward. "Stay in front of me, boy," Vegeta growled. "You never know what creatures are lurking about, and your lack of awareness is nothing short of astounding."

"Yes sir," Trunks replied automatically, now walking a few steps ahead of his father.

Trunks' hands began to shake again from his stress. He was walking in what seemed like the middle of nowhere, on a dark and cold planet, with his father walking right behind him. For some reason, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was walking the plank. He clenched his fists tightly to stop the shaking, which made Vegeta chuckle from behind him.

"What's the matter? Don't tell me you're afraid of the dark," Vegeta said. For no particular reason, his tone sent a chill down Trunks' spine.

"No," Trunks said, shaking his head.

"A true Saiyan fears nothing, not even death," Vegeta informed the teenager, taking on an almost lecturing tone. Trunks smiled a little at that, deep down imagining that this is what Vegeta would probably sound like while talking to him, if he knew who Trunks really was.

They walked on in silence, trudging along in the sand. Trunks ran a hand through his now sweaty hair, feeling fatigued. He was wondering if he was getting sick. To get his mind off of it, he decided to break the monotony and try engaging Vegeta in conversation after they had walked about a mile through the dark desert.

"So these scouters, they're communication devices?"

"The best of their kind," Vegeta replied in a guarded tone.

"Then why do we need someone to fix them?"

"Because I disarmed all of our scouters and took them offline. Even yours is offline. Though it's brand new, I didn't activate the inter-communication mode on it."

Trunks frowned in confusion. "But why can't we just activate -"

"Enough out of you, boy," Vegeta said, sharply cutting Trunks off. "It's my turn now to ask the questions."

"Okay…" Trunks said in a wary voice as he tensed up in anticipation.

"Do you want me to teach you the critical survival lessons of the universe, boy?"

"Yes, yes. I would like that very much," Trunks replied eagerly, relaxing now and starting to feel a little more at ease. With his father on his side and walking behind him, there was little that could happen to him.

Vegeta snickered at the teenager's enthusiasm. "Well, the first thing you must know is that you never do something for someone else without getting something in return. I will tell you nothing, boy, until you tell me how it is that you can suppress your power level."

"Oh, well, that's a simple technique," Trunks said with a smile as he took a quick glance over his shoulder at his father. Vegeta just raised his eyebrow at him, his eyes guarded. Trunks looked forward again and kept walking, trudging along. "You just have to be in tune with your life energy all at once, and focus on it until you can control every bit of it. If you can control it, then you can bottle it up inside of you and no one will detect it."

"Simple yet incredibly useful technique," Vegeta said from behind him. "Where did you learn such a thing?"

Trunks frowned and looked down a little. "My master. He showed me the technique," he said in a soft voice.

"Why so blue, kid? He taught you well. He must be proud."

"He died some time ago," Trunks said with a wince as a familiar pain tightened around his heart.

"Hey, don't worry," Vegeta said in a surprisingly caring and sympathetic voice. "I will take good care of you now, kid… I promise."

Trunks smiled. Maybe this was the good side of Vegeta that his mother had seen. Yes, maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. "Thanks, Vegeta," he said genuinely.

Vegeta chuckled. "Don't mention it. Now then, another question for you."

"Shoot."

"Tell me, half-breed…did you _really_ think that Nappa wouldn't tell me that you lied to us about your power?"

Trunks slowly came to a stop, his breath catching in his throat as his father's words rang loud and clear in his mind.

He knew.

"What's the matter? Was it something I said?" his father's nonchalant voice asked from behind him.

"Whatever Nappa said, it's not true," Trunks said, trying to keep his desperation out of his voice even though he could practically feel the heat of his father's rage bearing down on his back. "I am not-"

Vegeta released a furious growl as he grabbed Trunks by the arm and spun him around. Before Trunks could get up a proper defense, Vegeta had already landed a vicious punch to the face that knocked the teenager down hard, sending his scouter flying. Trunks coughed, his body suddenly beginning to tremble as blood trickled out of his nose. The teenager blinked and shook his head, finally realizing that something was seriously wrong with this picture. He felt zapped, like he had no strength at all. He slowly tried pulling himself up, but it was taking an extraordinary amount of effort.

Meanwhile, Vegeta circled him like a shark that smelled blood.

"You lied to us about your true power. You _conveniently_ stumbled upon us on a random purging assignment, one week after Ares failed an assassination attempt on the lives of me and my men. You must take me to be a goddamn fool, boy."

Trunks glanced up warily just in time to see Vegeta slam his foot down hard right on his sternum, forcing him back down to the ground. Trunks cried out in pain at the impact, his father's violent blow cracking the plate of his armor. The teenager grimaced and looked up at his father, but Vegeta's eyes were cold and uncompromising.

"You show far too much concern over my well-being. You show far too much interest towards the Tuffles, as if trying to find out what we think about them. Then you play with your technological _toy_ and almost cry when I destroy it. What was it, boy? A spying device for the Tuffles?" he sneered.

"NO! It was something my mother gave me!" Trunks yelled instinctively, horrified at the conclusion his father had come to. His plan to join the Saiyans was rapidly backfiring in his face. The teenager desperately tried summoning up strength to remove his father's foot from his chest, but his eyes widened in panic when he realized it was to no avail. Vegeta tilted his head curiously as he looked down at the teenager, clearly seeing what he was trying to do.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. You should _really_ pay more attention to what you eat, kid," Vegeta said as a sinister smirk spread back over his face.

"You… _poisoned_ me…?" Trunks gasped out in complete disbelief. Vegeta threw his head back and laughed loudly at the accusation.

"Give me more credit than _that_ , kid. There is no honor in poisoning someone. It's a cowardly thing to do, wouldn't you agree?"

Vegeta then lifted his foot off Trunks' chest, and with a snarl, slammed his boot down onto his son's wrist, shattering it instantly. He snickered as Trunks bit back a scream, only releasing a hiss through his teeth to show his agony as he clutched his forearm. The teenager brought up his hand and wrist gingerly in front of him. His fingers were all twitching uncontrollably from the blow. The teenager grit his teeth and tried sitting up, only to find that he couldn't.

Vegeta continued to circle him like a cat playing with a mouse. The prince licked his lips in anticipation, amusement bright in his eyes.

"That bread you were eating was loaded with a mineral that absorbs all of your strength. The stronger you are, the harder it brings you down. Frieza would force us to consume it to teach us to survive the hard way." The prince smirked. "My men and I, though, have now grown immune to it. I ordered Nappa to give you some to toughen you up, and then he let me in on your little secret. I gotta tell you, kid. I don't like secrets."

Trunks realized the truth and it made his mouth run dry. Vegeta had found out that Trunks was hiding his true power level from him, had classified him as a threat, and had brought him there to execute him.

And with his strength and ki completely drained, there wasn't a damn thing Trunks could do to stop him.

"I took you in, you worthless piece of half-breed shit," Vegeta snarled, planting his boot down right on his son's throat. Trunks gasped and coughed, instantly trying to fight his father to get his foot off. "Gave you armor. Vouched for you in front of _Frieza_ , for fuck's sake. AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME?" Vegeta screamed. "By playing me for a fool and working for my enemies behind my back!"

Trunks reached out desperately with his good hand to his father's leg, his face turning bright red as he struggled to breathe. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried transforming into a Super Saiyan as a last resort, but it was no use. He was weak and couldn't summon up the necessary energy.

"You offend my intelligence, boy," Vegeta said in a cold, empty tone, staring down at the teenager in the sand, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. Trunks squinted up at him, his hand on his father's boot. He couldn't budge it; it might as well have been a steel anvil on his throat. "You are with the Tuffles, and every breath you take is an insult to my honor as the Prince of all Saiyans."

"I am not with them!" Trunks gasped out, clawing desperately at his father's leg now to let go of him. His vision was starting to blotch, fading in and out. He was dangerously close to passing out.

"LIAR!" Vegeta roared furiously. He removed his boot from Trunks' throat, making Trunks gasp in desperate amounts of air to soothe his burning lungs. He barely had the chance to get in one good breath before Vegeta ruthlessly brought his foot down right on Trunks' broken wrist. Trunks screamed so loud his lungs hurt, tears coming to his eyes.

He had never felt so defenseless in his life. Even the androids had been quick to knock him unconscious with their blows. His father, on the other hand, worked the opposite way.

"You ARE with them!" Vegeta snarled. "You are here to infiltrate us and feed information to our enemies, you lying half-breed piece of fucking TRASH! Were you waiting until I turned my back to unleash your true power and destroy me for good, you coward? Or was the plan to lead me back to Ares so he could do the job himself? Well? What was it, kid?"

"NO! I AM with you! I swear it!" Trunks screamed back. His lavender hair was plastered to his forehead from his sweat now as he looked up into the dark, merciless eyes of his father. "I am on your side, Vegeta!"

Vegeta stared down at Trunks, his expression holding no compassion for the boy's pain. Trunks was lying partially on his side, clutching his injured arm. He was hissing as he exhaled, trying his best to hide his pain from his father. Even now, there was still an inexplicable shred left of his subconscious desire to impress his father.

"Enough of your lies, boy. Let's get down to business. We can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way. Your choice."

Vegeta's glare was deadly as he raised his right palm so it was aimed directly over the teenager's face. Trunks' eyes grew wide as his father's hand began to glow. "You tell me where Ares is, and I will make your death fast and painless… Hmph. And they say I am not _merciful_ ," Vegeta said with a dark, mirthless chuckle.

Trunks instinctively yelled out, "I AM NOT WITH THE TUFFLES!"

Vegeta gave a tsk, and shook his head in disapproval.

"Wrong answer," he said, his voice void of emotion. He shifted his hand over and fired.

Trunks hollered in agony, rolling onto his side and clutching his arm which Vegeta had just fired a ki blast on at point-blank range. It was the same arm with his now shattered wrist. The blast rapidly burned through the material of his black training suit and seared right into his flesh. Trunks' body started trembling and the sweat dripped into his eyes again as his skin turned raw and began blistering up, looking like dried pink glue that was peeling up on the spot. The teenager swallowed back his pain and grit his teeth, the smell of his own burning flesh making him extremely nauseous.

With his foot, Vegeta callously kicked Trunks in the ribs, forcing him to roll over so he was on his back again. Trunks gasped as Vegeta planted his boot firmly onto his throat again.

"Care to change your answer now?" the Saiyan prince asked, cracking a smirk.

"No," Trunks hissed, breathing heavily and trembling, one hand on his father's boot which was mercifully not applying the pressure from before. "Not with them."

Vegeta stared at the teenager for moments on end, before finally closing his eyes and sighing. "I had thought you could be on our side for the day we overthrow Frieza. You disappoint me, boy," Vegeta said in a tone that almost sounded regretful. Trunks looked up at him in surprise. "So much potential. What a pity…"

The prince raised his hand so his palm was over Trunks' face. Trunks blinked when his father's hand began to glow again with dangerous yellow ki. The teenager could sense that this time, the energy his father was gathering up was lethal. This one wasn't going to be a warning blast. Trunks knew damn well that there would be nothing left of his head if this blast was fired.

Vegeta's lips curled back into a cruel smirk. With the light emitting from his hand, he was a terrifying sight. "Send Frieza my regards when he joins you in the next dimension, kid."

The teenager suddenly got an idea faster than the speed of light. Out of sheer desperation, Trunks cried out, "My father served your father! He was loyal to the king, as I am to you!"

Vegeta's eyes flashed at the words. Before Trunks could realize his mistake, Vegeta kicked him hard, right in the face. Trunks blacked out for a brief moment, before he slowly blinked, dazed from the blow.

"First you try to play me for a fool, and now you bring my father into this. Now you've _really_ pissed me off, kid," Vegeta snarled, circling him again, rage burning in his dark eyes. "I was going to put you out of your misery, but now, I think I'll enjoy taking you apart instead. So tell me. Which limb do you want to lose first?"

"Not lying," Trunks said, spitting out blood as his body trembled in the sand. He raised his head, groggy, his vision hazy as it came back to him. He squinted up at his father. "The truth…show you…"

Vegeta laughed loudly as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh, kid, you crack me up! I haven't killed anyone lately that's been _nearly_ as entertaining as- as…"

His voice trailed off when he looked back down at the teenager. His eyes narrowed curiously at what the boy was extending to him with one trembling hand. It was some kind of chain, and for a moment, Vegeta thought he caught a glimpse of something awfully familiar on the pendant at the end of it.

"What is this?" Vegeta hissed, snatching the chain out of Trunks' hand. He quickly examined the chain before his eyes settled on the pendant. He raised it up closer to him, and his eyes widened. "Impossible," he whispered. The design was one he was very familiar with.

"Royal crest," Trunks wheezed out, before collapsing back to the sand from exhaustion. He blinked and stared up at the stars, thankful for the brief reprieve in the beating.

"I know what it is!" Vegeta snapped, glaring down at the teenager. "What I want to know is, how did a worthless piece of shit like you get your hands on this? ANSWER ME NOW, BOY!" he screamed, brutally driving his boot down hard into Trunks' sternum again, shattering the plate of his armor and damn near shattering the teenager's sternum with it. Trunks cried out in pain and coughed up blood from the blow, wheezing as he looked up at his father through bleary eyes.

"Was my father's," Trunks spat out angrily. "My mother gave it to me. Told me to serve you, if we ever met. My father was loyal to the king."

Vegeta stared at Trunks for a while, before looking back down at the pendant in his hands. He removed his foot from his son's chest as he ran one thumb over the engraved royal family crest of his father and his ancestors.

 _There is no way the boy could have come up with the design of my royal family crest on his own,_ he thought to himself, frowning thoughtfully. _How, then, could he have acquired this?_

Vegeta's mind was racing. He had never seen the boy before in his life until recently, so the boy's father _must_ have had some contact with his own. King Vegeta. Clearly, the king must have trusted the boy's father if he was allowed close enough to see the royal family crest of the Saiyans. The royal family crest was worn by the king and the prince on their armor, and their armor _only_.

The boy couldn't have been with the Tuffles. The crest was only created when the very first King Vegeta had been crowned, right after the Saiyans had claimed the planet as their own. The Tuffles were long gone by then.

 _Can it be true?_ Vegeta turned his hard gaze to Trunks and stared at him for a long time. His dark eyes were scrutinizing, contemplating. He looked back down at the pendant. _Could this boy's father truly have worked for mine?_

Trunks took a shaky breath, taking advantage of his father's distraction to slip his good hand inside his broken armor. His fingers felt around, and he was relieved to find that what little remained of his armor had served to protect Goku's heart virus antidote.

He let his hand rest on his chest when Vegeta turned his piercing gaze down to him. Trunks eyed him warily, his body tense for another attack. He braced himself for it.

They stared at each other for a while, before Vegeta finally grunted. He looked down at the pendant and slowly rubbed the engraving again with his thumb. "Do you swear your allegiance to me, boy, on your father's honor?" Vegeta finally asked in a low voice. Trunks felt relief flood his body at his father's words, and he cracked a small smile.

"Yes. I would die for you," Trunks said with pure conviction, meaning every word. Vegeta looked back at him immediately, raising an eyebrow in curiosity and slight bewilderment over his words. The prince searched the teenager's blue eyes for any sign of a lie, and was honestly shocked to find none.

Finally, he slowly gave a conceding nod. "Very well. Your father served mine, and now you can serve me. I might still find some use for you, kid," he said with a smirk.

Trunks settled back into the sand, breathing heavily and silently thanking his mother over and over again.

"Thank you, Vegeta," Trunks said in a weary voice.

"Shut up and get up immediately before I change my mind," Vegeta ordered. He tossed the chain so it landed on Trunks' chest. Trunks reached up with his right hand to it, taking the chain tightly in his fist. Vegeta crossed his arms and watched with hard eyes as Trunks slowly tried getting up to his feet. He raised an eyebrow when Trunks fell back to the sand, clutching his left arm painfully.

Trunks sat in the sand, trying to catch his breath. He was wiping the sweat out of his eyes again when he heard Vegeta give a frustrated hiss.

"Your injuries are all trivial. Now get up, boy. We have to go see about these scouters," he said in a harsh tone.

Trunks grit his teeth and forced himself to get back up as Vegeta looked on. The prince grunted when the teenager was standing again, before turning and walking off. Trunks looked after his father, a mixture of emotions flooding through him as he watched the prince walk away. Wearily, he reached up with his good arm and wiped the blood off his face. He spit out a mouthful of blood to the sand before examining his left arm. The pain had subsided from his burns, but his wrist was throbbing and swollen, straining against his glove. He sighed and slipped his chain back on, silently thanking his mother again.

Trunks barely looked up in time to catch his red scouter flying at his face.

"Better keep up with me, kid, or I'm leaving you behind."

With that, a bright blue aura exploded around Vegeta, creating a vortex of black sand all around him. A fraction of a second later, the full-blood took off into the air, speeding away.

Trunks growled, suddenly fiercely determined to prove himself in his father's eyes. He had (quite painfully) earned Vegeta's trust for the time being, but he was a long, long ways away from having anything that even remotely resembled respect from the proud prince.

A second later, he shot up into the air as well, keeping his left arm close to him as he caught up to his father. Vegeta was flying low, no more than five feet from the ground, sand blowing up as he flew over it. Trunks followed his lead. He was still drained and even the act of flying was completely taxing.

They flew in silence, with Trunks ignoring the very real implications of his physical condition. Without the trump card of his Super Saiyan strength, he was at his father's mercy. The teenager grit his teeth as it dawned on him that he was no longer in any position to disobey a direct order from Vegeta. The Saiyan had been "merciful" with him once, and he highly doubted he would receive the same kindness again.

After about twenty minutes of flight, Vegeta finally descended, landing easily on the ground. Trunks followed suit, trying not to show how winded and spent he was. Vegeta instantly reached up to his scouter and activated it as Trunks glanced around. They were in front of what looked like a small village with little, humble homes that looked almost like cabins. Trunks frowned as Vegeta sniffed the air and looked around with his intense gaze, before advancing to one of the cabins.

Trunks came up behind him as Vegeta reached up and knocked.

The door finally opened, and a blue-skinned alien appeared in the dimly lit doorway. The alien had white hair and aging skin, and kind golden eyes that showed many years behind them. It was wearing a simple white garment that enhanced the aura of wisdom Trunks was sensing from him.

"Yilayen, tunisai Vejiita," the alien greeted politely in a foreign tongue. Almost immediately, the translation appeared on Trunks' scouter.

" _Welcome, Prince Vegeta."_

Vegeta instantly looked over his shoulder at Trunks, staring at the teenager's lit-up scouter in surprise. He mumbled something under his breath about fancy new models making kids lazy these days, before crossing his arms over his chest and turning his attention back to the matter at hand. He gave a nod, before responding in the foreign language with the fluency of a native. Trunks looked at him in surprise, only keeping up with the conversation because of his scouter.

" _Enough pleasantries, old man,"_ Vegeta said impatiently. _"You know why I have come."_

" _Yes,"_ the alien replied, slowly stepping aside. _"Please come in."_

Vegeta grunted and walked on in, with Trunks close behind. Trunks gave the alien a small, pained smile and a nod. The alien smiled back and Trunks instantly felt at ease with him. He was radiating warmth and kindness, two things that Trunks hadn't experienced since he left his world to travel back in time. It seemed that a smile was truly universal in its meaning.

There was a low fire burning in the corner of the room that wasn't spreading, burning away silently in blue flames. Not far away from the fire was a low table about a foot off the ground. Vegeta was following the alien over to it. The prince remained standing as the alien very slowly lowered himself so he was sitting on the ground in front of the table. Spread on the table, much to Trunks' surprise, was a variety of highly advanced technical equipment that could rival his mother's.

Vegeta took his green scouter off and unceremoniously dropped it on the table.

" _I need this scouter reprogrammed so Frieza cannot eavesdrop on my communications with my men,"_ Vegeta ordered gruffly. _"It's offline right now so he can't track our conversations, but I need it back online as soon as possible. Preferably without the bastard or any of his cohorts listening in."_

" _Yes, I have been preparing the chip that will do the job,"_ the alien responded kindly and patiently. He picked up Vegeta's scouter and lifted up a small tool to begin tinkering with it. Trunks eyed the tool with slight bitterness, reminded that he was stuck in this time. He looked away.

" _This is not the same scouter I brought last time. That one was destroyed. This new one is the same model as the old one though. Can you do it, old man?"_

" _It won't be a problem, Prince Vegeta."_

" _Good. I also will need this boy's scouter to have the same ability."_

" _A simple matter of synchronizing his scouter's frequency to yours, like you did for the others. Only one of the scouters needs the chip I have designed."_

" _Fine. Get to work then, old man."_

Trunks read their conversation and was genuinely surprised at the relatively calm way Vegeta was speaking to the alien. The alien was clearly older, and he was sure Vegeta could crush him with one hand if he wanted to. Yet there was none of his father's trademark hostility when addressing the powerless blue alien.

 _Huh, maybe he really_ is _a friend,_ Trunks thought to himself as he slowly and gingerly lowered himself so he was sitting against the wall near the door. He took a deep breath and leaned his head back against the wall.

" _Also. Have your mate come and tend to this boy,"_ Vegeta ordered, glancing at Trunks over his shoulder. The teenager blinked in surprise. _"His injuries will bring unwanted attention if left untreated."_

" _She will be in shortly. She is visiting a friend,"_ the alien said, having now disassembled Vegeta's scouter. He was studying the circuitry carefully.

Vegeta just grunted and walked over to the fire burning in the corner. He sat down next to it in one fluid motion, crosslegged, leaning against the wall. He crossed his arms and scowled, closing his eyes.

After a few moments, Vegeta hissed impatiently.

"And just _what_ are you staring at, brat?" he demanded, startling Trunks who immediately looked away.

"Um, nothing. Just didn't think you cared about my injuries…"

Vegeta snorted as if that was the most absurd thing he had ever heard. "Here is the first lesson you must learn about survival, boy. Show no weaknesses. If you are going to be by my side, then you can't look like a weakling, as you do now. That is as much as I _care._ "

"Thanks… I guess," Trunks said quietly.

"I told you. I'm a great guy," Vegeta said with a chuckle, before fluently slipping into the alien tongue. " _Dritrosai, tell this boy how great I am."_

The kind blue alien smiled as he continued working diligently. _"Prince Vegeta spared my life and my village's in exchange for technological services. He is very merciful."_

"Hear that, kid?" Vegeta said, opening his eyes and looking over at Trunks with a smirk. "I am… _merciful_."

Trunks didn't reply, ignoring his father laughing at his own words. The teenager just looked down at his broken wrist. He couldn't move any of his fingers at all. He tried to gingerly remove his glove, but he grit his teeth and closed his eyes shut tightly as a wave of pain shot practically up his whole arm. Sighing, he leaned his head back against the wall, his exhaustion suddenly overwhelming.

Some time later, the sounds of the fire cackling and his father's low voice started to pull Trunks out of his haze. There was a female voice as well, and Trunks frowned, not understanding what they were saying. He slowly opened his eyes, with considerable difficulty, to see another blue alien kneeling in front of him. He narrowed his eyes and tried to see, but his sight was blurred. He shook his head and his vision slowly started to focus. The blue alien was old like the one still working on Vegeta's scouter, with black and gray hair and kind, gentle golden eyes. The physique was clearly feminine.

" _It's all right, child,"_ she said gently. Trunks blinked and looked down to see that she had already wrapped up his burns. She now had his glove off and was tending to his damaged wrist. He couldn't feel a thing, and figured she must have given him some kind of anesthetic. The teenager felt his chest, but it didn't hurt anymore. He reached up to his face; there was some kind of bandage right next to his eye now. The swelling of his lips and his nose had gone down almost completely.

Trunks smiled at the alien gratefully, not knowing the language enough to express his gratitude with words. She smiled back at him.

" _Its operating frequency is completely out of the range of frequencies that Frieza's scouters normally operate in,"_ the other alien was explaining. Trunks looked up to see that Vegeta was crouching next to the table, surveying his repaired scouter. _"You should be in the clear now."_

Vegeta grunted and turned to look at Trunks. "Toss me your scouter, boy." Trunks did as he asked, and Vegeta caught it easily. He brought it down and pressed a button on it, before motioning for something on the table. The alien handed him a small tool and Trunks watched in amazement as Vegeta opened up the scouter easily. He used the tool to turn a wheel here and there, before snapping the scouter closed. He then threw it back to Trunks and stood up.

Vegeta slipped on his repaired green scouter and activated it, with Trunks following his example. After a moment, Vegeta scowled and spoke harshly, "Raditz. Nappa. Come in immediately if you fools can hear me." Trunks could hear his father's voice coming in through his own red scouter.

"Nappa here," a voice cackled in.

"Raditz checking in. Is everyone else off the air?"

"Let's see… Zarbon, one day, I'm going to rip you to pieces and leave you to rot," Vegeta said with pure hatred. There was silence for a while, before he smirked. "Yes, it appears that we are not being surveyed like children."

"All right! Way to go, Vegeta," Nappa laughed. "We're finally back online."

"I'll be there shortly," Vegeta said in a gruff tone, deactivating his scouter. He crossed his arms and looked down at the alien who was still sitting at the table. _"Good work, old man,"_ he said with a nod of approval. He turned to the other alien tending to Trunks. _"Are you done with the boy yet, woman?"_

" _Yes, Prince Vegeta,"_ she replied, finishing up securing Trunks' wrist. He looked down at his hand. The alien had spread some type of strange ointment on his fingers that had brought the swelling and twitching down almost completely. He now had something that looked like hardened leaves wrapped from his knuckles down to his forearm. Trunks grabbed his glove and pulled it on, pleased when he felt no pain.

"Let's go then, boy," Vegeta ordered, already heading to the door. Trunks slowly pulled himself up to his feet, feeling a little better but still much weaker than he usually was. The female alien was heading over to her mate, and Trunks gave them a look of gratitude.

" _Come again if you need anything else, Prince Vegeta,"_ the old man said kindly.

Vegeta just grunted as he and Trunks walked out of the cabin together, back into the darkness of the night.

They hadn't taken five steps before Vegeta turned, automatically raised his right palm, and fired a vicious ki blast to the cabin, making it immediately explode into cinders.

"What are you doing!" Trunks yelled in horror. Vegeta raised his other palm, ignoring his son, his eyes already locking onto his next targets. With both hands now, he began firing lethal blasts with deadly accuracy, each blast destroying another cabin of the village. Smoke and fire rose up into the air from the carnage, and the smell of burning flesh and death reached Trunks' nose again. "Stop it!" the teenager cried out in dismay.

Vegeta ignored him until Trunks desperately grabbed one of his wrists to make him stop. With speed that shocked the teenager, Vegeta phased out and re-appeared behind him, kicking Trunks hard in the base of his spine and forcing the teenager to drop to his knees. Trunks was still weak and his reflexes were far too slow. He grit his teeth furiously, his good hand clenching a fistful of sand in frustration.

"You are too fucking soft, boy," Vegeta sneered in disgust. "These freaks are nothing to you, and yet you mourn their deaths."

"They _trusted_ you," Trunks spat out bitterly. "And you killed them like they were nothing!"

"They knew too much about me and my equipment. They were weak and could have easily been coerced into helping the Tuffles track us down. I got what I needed from them. There was no reason to keep them alive a moment longer," Vegeta replied in a cold voice.

"You…" Trunks shook his head, suddenly deeply ashamed to have any relation to the man standing behind him. "Monster…"

Vegeta laughed loudly in response. "Kid, you've got spirit. I like that. Now then. Since you were so rude and interrupted me, you will now finish what I started. Time to get your hands dirty."

Trunks felt his heart sink as Vegeta roughly grabbed him by the hair and forced him to stand up. Trunks reached up with his good hand and shoved his father's hand away. Vegeta just snickered, before pointing to the carnage.

"Look there, boy. Survivors."

Trunks reluctantly looked, to find a group of blue aliens running away in terror. They were young. Children. He swallowed heavily, his senses picking up on Vegeta getting another ki blast ready.

Except this one was aimed at him.

"Lesson number one in survival techniques was show no weaknesses. Time for lesson number two. _Kill or be killed_ ," Vegeta lectured, still standing behind Trunks. "What's it going to be, Mr. Loyalty? Are you going to make me regret keeping you alive? Because I can easily remedy such a mistake right now."

"They're _children_ ," Trunks said through clenched teeth.

"Precisely why they must die," his father answered, his tone now ice cold. "Children are emotional creatures. They harbor grudges and swear revenge for their loved ones. Did you know that Ares was a child when he learned of my existence? Look at the clown now. Someone could have done me a huge favor and put the coward down when he was a brat, and saved me the trouble."

"I can't do it," Trunks said, his voice threatening to break.

Vegeta growled impatiently. "Either you do it, or I will. And I promise you, boy, I will _not_ give them the quick death that you will. Bet on it."

Trunks choked back the loathing slowly boiling up inside of him for his own father, before raising a trembling hand to the children running away. He concentrated and summoned up practically all of his energy, still incredibly weak. Finally, his hand began to glow, just as tears of anger and hatred came to his eyes.

"Do it, boy," Vegeta snarled from behind him. Trunks was sweating profusely now from the heat of the ki blast that Vegeta was aiming directly at the back of his head, and also from using so much energy to gather up his own simple ki blast. "Destroy them at once."

There was nothing he could do. He took a shaky breath, before silently asking Gohan and his mother for forgiveness.

He then fired.


	7. His Father's World

Vegeta snaked his way through the tavern where his subordinates were. The lighting was dark and there was a decent crowd of aliens there. The Saiyan scowled, taking his time as he observed everyone around him suspiciously, scanning automatically for any signs of an enemy waiting with murderous intentions. But the only thing he saw in the eyes of those who recognized him was sheer terror. He shot them a smug smirk; that terrified look whenever he came into sight was always a tremendous compliment to him.

Finally, he came to the back corner where Raditz and Nappa were sitting at a round table. There were already a slew of drinks in front of the Saiyans, and Vegeta snickered at the sight.

"Got the party started without me, I see," he said, drawing their attention.

"Vegeta, there are plenty of drinks to go around," Raditz said with a loud laugh.

Vegeta observed them for a moment. He then frowned and silently pointed to his scouter, before giving a cutting motion with his hand. Catching his hint, the other two Saiyans deactivated the communications in their scouters.

"Did you take care of the kid?" Raditz asked.

Vegeta took a seat at the table and crossed his arms over his chest. He eyed the drinks on the table for a moment with clear distrust in his eyes. Finally, he shook his head. "Kid's not a threat after all. He's a _pure_ _heart_ ," he sneered.

Raditz and Nappa both simultaneously groaned in disgust.

"A pure heart. I shoulda known," Nappa said as he shook his head.

Vegeta ran one gloved hand down over his face, a contemplating look on his face as he gazed at the table in front of him. He remained silent for half a minute, and neither Nappa nor Raditz dared rush him. It was clear that Vegeta was falling deep into thought about something, and they knew from painful experience that Vegeta absolutely hated having his train of thought derailed.

Finally, Vegeta looked to Nappa, his eyes narrowed. "What exactly was the power reading that you say you got on the boy?" he demanded.

"36,000," Nappa replied automatically.

Vegeta looked back down, frowning as he crossed his arms over his chest again. He shook his head slowly. "Not possible," he finally mumbled, raising one fist so it was over his mouth, his features etched in concentration.

"I know, that's what I said," Raditz said, pulling a drink closer to him. "Nappa's scouter must be malfunctioning because there's no way a boy his age can be that strong."

Vegeta's dark eyes shot up to Raditz. He glared at him for a moment, before lowering his fist and grunting.

"Fool. The boy's power level is much higher than 36,000," Vegeta finally said, making Raditz's and Nappa's mouths both drop in shock. Vegeta glanced past the aliens towards the entrance of the tavern they were in. "He was completely defenseless against me. The nrehi left him absolutely debilitated. The more powerful you are, the harder that mineral brings you down. The boy is powerful…much more powerful than any of us."

Nappa and Raditz shot each other a look, both silently asking each other the same question. It was completely unlike Vegeta to know that someone was that much stronger than him, and not kill them when given the chance.

"You were merciful?" Nappa finally asked, trying to keep the shock out of his voice.

Vegeta looked over at him and smirked. "I suppose you could call it that, now couldn't you?" He then leaned closer to the table so his forearms were resting on it. Nappa and Raditz instinctively leaned in closer as well as Vegeta spoke to them in a hushed tone.

"Look, it's like this. The boy is a pure heart and won't betray me. Of this I am sure. If I can break him and get him to enjoy the taste of the kill, then he will make for a powerful ally. We can use him to help us with the Tuffles, and he can also help us finally defeat Frieza. By that time, I will be stronger than him." Vegeta's sinister smirk crept back up to his face.

"And _then_ , once the boy has served his purpose, I will personally dispose of the half-breed myself… until then though, we must fully gain his trust. So let's make the boy feel at home, shall we, gentlemen?"

Raditz smirked and nodded while Nappa laughed.

"That's good thinking, Vegeta. The punk will be useful after all."

"Where is he now?" Raditz asked, glancing around and trying to spot Trunks.

"He's outside coming to terms with his first real kill. I knew he had it in him. He just needed a little… coaxing," Vegeta said, his smirk growing. He lowered his eyes to the drinks in front of him, and his smirk disappeared. "Everything clean here?"

"Yes. I scoped the place out when we got here. No foul play," Raditz assured him. Vegeta grunted and narrowed his eyes, looking off to the side at some aliens walking past.

"What are we going to do about the Tuffles, Vegeta?" Nappa asked, frowning as he thought of their enemy that was lurking in the shadows.

"Nothing," Vegeta said, to the shock of Raditz and Nappa. He ignored their looks as he reached for a drink that was untouched. He pulled it closer to him and hesitantly brought it up to his lips. He sniffed it first, trying to pick up anything suspicious with his senses. Grunting, he poured a little bit of the drink out on the table. "The universe is too large to go on a wild, aimless chase," he finally said, fingering the liquid on the table as if it would dissolve his glove on contact. He finally picked up the drink again and smirked.

"We will wait and let the cowards come to us."

* * *

As soon as Vegeta was out of sight, Trunks dropped to his knees and promptly vomited. His body was shaking, sweat running into his eyes, burning them and making him shut them tightly.

It wasn't that he didn't have it in him to kill anyone. He definitely did, if the target was right. If he had a real shot at Frieza or if he could stand up to the androids, he was sure he would mercilessly make quick work of them and enjoy every second of it. He was truly his father's son in this regard.

But _this…_ another wave of nausea hit Trunks and he heaved again, shaken after what he had done. He had fired, he had killed, and now he had innocent blood on his hands and it was tearing him up inside. All his life, he had wanted to protect the weak. Here though, in his father's world, the weak weren't allowed to live.

Trunks bit back a bile of disgust in his throat as he thought of his father. The same man who had laughed after Trunks had made quick work of the fleeing children of the village. The same man who had actually congratulated him on a job well done, as if what Trunks had done was honorable.

Trunks wiped his lips with the back of his hand, taking a deep breath. He slowly got up to his feet, feeling much better now. The teenager frowned and raised up his good hand, forming a small blue ball of ki in his palm. He played with it and manipulated it expertly for a few seconds, pleased and relieved that it was effortless now. He quickly extinguished the ball and clenched his fist tightly, feeling the power flowing through his arm with restored vigor. It seemed that whatever the hell the Saiyans had made him consume in that bread back on Frieza's home base was finally leaving his system.

Trunks looked up at the door his father had walked through, his blue eyes burning with a steely resolve as he swore to himself that he would not let Vegeta get the upper hand on him like that again.

Never again.

Ten minutes later, Trunks finally walked into the tavern. He was wearing a scowl and a suspicious mannerism that made him practically the mirror image of a particular Saiyan who walked in not too long before him. The teenager's blue eyes darted to and fro as he scanned his new environment. He was in what seemed to be an alien version of a bar. Seemed it was more than just a smile that was universal…

The place was dungy and it seemed to him that no one there held a high moral standard. The tavern had a dark vibe, with aliens laughing loudly and drinking to their heart's content. Some were even engaging in obscene acts in the darkness, making Trunks redden in embarrassment when he caught glimpses of them. Around half of the aliens were natives, from their blue skin and their yellow eyes. Trunks didn't know what the rest of them were, but he did know what the three in the far back corner were.

Vegeta caught sight of him first and motioned him over. Trunks' scowl deepened, maneuvering around the aliens around him. He clenched his fists and approached, already determining that he was not going to drink a damn thing that they offered him.

"Well well well, look who we have here," Vegeta said with a smirk. Trunks gave him an ice cold glare which made Vegeta throw his head back and laugh loudly. "Well now! _Someone_ is unhappy with me. Was it something I did?" Vegeta asked innocently, that maddening smirk ever-present on his face.

"Whatever," Trunks mumbled under his breath. Nappa pulled out a seat for Trunks and motioned for him to sit. Trunks observed the drinks on the table which looked like medieval beer mugs made out of wood, with handles to boot. There were at least seven of them on the table.

"Sit down and relax, kid, you're too uptight," Nappa told him with a grin. Trunks shot his gaze over to the large Saiyan and remembered his betrayal. He glared at him, his fists clenching even tighter.

"Come now, boy, have a seat," Vegeta ordered. Trunks glanced back at his father and frowned, but reluctantly did as he was told.

"Don't we have to go purge the planets Zarbon assigned to us?" Trunks asked hesitantly, taking in the relaxed vibe the Saiyans were giving him. It was very unnatural and it was making him incredibly uneasy.

"The half-breed is in a rush to kill, I see," Raditz said with a laugh.

"Take it easy, kid." Vegeta smirked and amicably clapped Trunks on the back. Trunks eyed him warily, wondering what his father's new game was. "There will always be time to do Frieza's dirty work later. For now, we can relax a while. Here. Have a drink," he said, pushing one of the beer mugs closer to him.

"No thanks," Trunks replied evenly.

Raditz smirked. "Don't worry, kid. I already scoped the place. It's clean."

"Right," Trunks mumbled disbelievingly. Vegeta laughed at the clear distrust on the teenager's face.

"So you're learning a thing or two from me already, aren't you, boy?" Vegeta said with a smug, satisfied smirk. "Raditz is right though. The drinks are clean. Of all the places in the universe, we've never had a problem here. Plus, the drinks are exquisite."

Trunks frowned at his father, before lowering his eyes to the drink that Vegeta had in front of him. Though Vegeta's hand was on the handle of the mug, the drink itself was still untouched.

"If the drinks are clean, why haven't you had any yet?" Trunks asked in a challenging tone. Nappa and Raditz both looked over at Vegeta, who was staring intently at Trunks. He was smirking, but his eyes were giving absolutely nothing away to the teenager. The prince's grip tightened on the mug handle as he chuckled.

"So distrustful, even after the mercy I showed you. I already told you that the drinks are fine. Have I _ever_ given you a reason not to trust me?" Vegeta asked nonchalantly, his smirk growing. He picked up his drink and took a large few large chugs of it to prove his point, before lowering the drink back to the table. He wiped his lips with the back of his hand, eyeing Trunks carefully. "See? No harm, no foul, kid."

Trunks frowned and slowly grabbed hold of the drink that Vegeta had pushed towards him, bringing it closer. He raised it up and took a sniff of it. He cringed; it was definitely an alcoholic drink, but it was impossibly strong. Nappa and Raditz laughed at his reaction while Vegeta silently studied him. The prince frowned thoughtfully, silently wondering just who the boy's father was. There was absolutely no way he could be so powerful and be the son of a low class soldier…

"What? Ya never had a real drink, half-breed?" Nappa asked mockingly.

"I don't really drink, no," Trunks admitted.

"What's next, kid? Are you going to tell us that you've never had a woman before either?" Raditz said with a smirk.

Trunks blushed uncomfortably and all three Saiyans burst out laughing at his response.

"Vegeta! We can't leave til we find a chick for this kid!" Nappa laughed, clapping Trunks on the back and nearly bringing the teenager face-first into the table as a result.

Vegeta smirked. "Sorry, Nappa. If anyone here is worth having, I will have her."

"Oh come on, Vegeta," Raditz growled adamantly. "You always get first dibs on the good-looking females!"

"Well now, I _am_ royalty," Vegeta said with an amused chuckle. "Now, if you fools think our usual protocol is unfair, we can always have a strength competition to settle things." He looked pointedly at Nappa, his smirk growing. "Though I'm sure you remember what happened the last time we engaged in such a competition."

Nappa blushed in embarrassment as Raditz howled with laughter. Vegeta had a full-blown, amused smile on his face as he observed Nappa.

"What happened?" Trunks asked curiously, relaxing a little at the obvious camaraderie between the three Saiyans.

Vegeta's smile turned smug. "When I was a child, Nappa lost in a strength competition to me and had to pay the ultimate price for such a defeat."

"Vegeta shaved his hair off," Raditz said, before he and Vegeta burst out into loud laughter at the memory as Nappa reddened even more.

"A Saiyan's hair never grows back," Nappa grumbled. "I've been bald ever since."

"Vegeta did it in his sleep, and Nappa cried when he woke up and saw his reflection!" Raditz barked out.

"I DID NOT CRY!" Nappa yelled adamantly. Raditz slammed one fist down on the table, raising his other hand to his eyes as he laughed hysterically. Vegeta lowered his head to his arms on the table, trying his best to hide his laughter but failing miserably. Against his will, Trunks cracked a smile at their genuine friendship.

"Ah, my favorite guests," an accented voice suddenly said from the side. Vegeta and Raditz both sobered up instantly as all four Saiyans immediately looked over. Trunks tensed, already bracing himself for Vegeta lashing out in violence. Standing next to their table was a native blue alien with a deep scar running down one side of his face. The scar left one of his eyes completely shut. His other golden eye was regarding them with warmth and a hint of gratitude. He had tussled orange hair that hung into his eyes.

"Ah, Uvi, good man," Vegeta said good-naturedly, reaching out and patting the alien on the arm in a friendly gesture. Trunks eyed his father suspiciously, not buying the act this time, but the alien hardly seemed distrusting. Vegeta turned to Trunks with a smirk. "This man here is the owner of this place, and I'll tell you, kid. There is nowhere in the universe where you can get a better drink."

"Ain't that the truth," Nappa said with a grin as he chugged a drink down while Raditz snickered.

"How's the family?" Vegeta asked casually, eyeing the alien closely as he lifted his mug for another drink.

"Doing well, Prince Vegeta. My wife recently gave birth to a son," Uvi said with a smile.

The three Saiyans all hollered simultaneously at the news, startling Trunks. He looked at them all in astonishment, before looking down at the drink in front of him. He decided that their drinks must have been hellaciously strong for all three Saiyans to be acting like this, especially his father. He lifted his own drink and ventured a tiny sip. His face instantly turned red as he tried not to choke on it.

"A boy! Isn't that something?" Raditz remarked, drawing Trunks' attention. Were they being legit or was this all a charade?

"You must be proud. Teach the boy well," Vegeta said with a smirk, raising his drink in congratulations.

Trunks instantly glanced over at him, hope bursting in his chest against his will at his father's words. Perhaps, if the truth came to light, his father would actually accept him… the teenager frowned and looked down. He was being ludicrous. He couldn't let Vegeta know the truth; it would definitely ensure that he would never exist in this time.

"Thank you," Uvi said kindly with a small bow. "I am retiring for the night to go be with them, but I arranged a special show for you out of gratitude for your past generosity, Prince Vegeta."

Vegeta's eyes darkened with suspicion as Uvi gestured with his hand to the opposite wall of the tavern. There was a stage with a light, the only light in the dark tavern. The Saiyans all instantly stared, and even Trunks found himself slightly mesmerized by the woman on stage. She was blue-skinned like most of the other aliens, but her skin was a lighter shade of blue, making her stand out. Her look was exotic, with jewels on her feminine physique that lit up as she danced hypnotically. Trunks swallowed heavily as the chatter of the tavern seemed to die down as everyone stared at the beauty with hazel eyes and black hair.

"Wow," the teenager mumbled to himself.

"Hn," Vegeta finally grunted after a few moments. He turned to Uvi, his eyes never leaving the dancer on the stage. "Arrange for the woman to come here once she is done. I would like a word with her."

"As you wish," the alien said politely, before heading off to pass the message along.

"A word?" Raditz asked with a knowing smirk. Vegeta just gave an indifferent shrug, eyeing the girl out of the corner of his eye.

"More or less," he finally responded, his own smirk slowly spreading over his face.

"That's not fair, Vegeta! You always get the good-looking ones," Nappa said with exasperation.

"Well now, there is only one way to settle this dispute. Since I am in a good mood, we will settle this the old-fashioned way," Vegeta said, raising his drink and downing the whole thing to Trunks' astonishment. The prince brought his empty mug down roughly to the table before cracking his neck, as if warming up. He glanced over at Trunks and gave him a challenging look. "You want in, boy?"

"No thanks," Trunks answered sheepishly, not fully comfortable with the idea of being intimate with an alien woman he didn't even know.

"Good, the less competition, the better," Raditz said, cracking his knuckles. Trunks tensed, already preparing for a brawl to break out between the three Saiyans over who would have the right to claim the erotic beauty.

Trunks nearly fell out of his seat when the three Saiyans started throwing their fists down repeatedly over the table in a game he knew all too well.

"How the HELL do you guys know how to play rock-paper-scissors?" Trunks nearly screamed from his shock. The three Saiyans all stopped mid-game and stared at Trunks like he had suddenly sprouted extra limbs.

"We learned it from the guys in the Ginyu Force," Raditz finally answered, as though the answer should have been obvious.

"Why the surprise, boy?" Vegeta asked curiously.

Trunks could hardly speak, his mind working too quickly for his mouth.

They knew his language.

They knew a game that he was fairly certain was _not_ universal.

Clearly, somewhere along the way, they must have known someone who had been to Earth. If he could figure out if that mysterious someone was still alive, he could maybe get the coordinates he needed to go to Earth. If he had the coordinates themselves, then maybe he could manually override the destination in his space pod…

The teenager blinked in surprise when he realized that Vegeta, Nappa, and Raditz were still staring at him. Nappa and Raditz were looking at him like he was insane, but Vegeta's glare was focused, his eyes narrowed as he coldly scrutinized the teenager sitting next to him. Trunks forced a laugh, brushing his lavender hair out of his face.

"It's just, I had no idea that people outside of my planet knew of the game," he finally admitted with a chuckle. It wasn't exactly a lie.

"Enough out of you, stupid boy. Back to business," Vegeta ordered gruffly, eyeing the woman in question for a moment before turning back to the table. Trunks watched in fascination as they resumed their game.

"1-2-3!"

Raditz threw scissors, Vegeta threw rock, Nappa threw paper. Raditz and Vegeta glanced at each other briefly. They both smirked.

"1-2-3!"

Raditz and Vegeta threw scissors, Nappa threw paper.

"Damn it! I always lose," Nappa grumbled, pulling a drink close to him and reluctantly joining Trunks in being an observer.

"1-2-3!"

Raditz threw paper, Vegeta threw rock. Vegeta scowled.

"HA. I win," Raditz remarked with pure satisfaction, pride filling his chest at getting one over on Vegeta. "Now _I_ get the wom-"

That's as far as he got before Vegeta punched him viciously right in the face, knocking the larger Saiyan to the floor and surprising the hell out of Trunks. Vegeta smirked as Nappa burst out laughing.

"The woman is mine," Vegeta said smugly.

Raditz reached up and put one hand on the table, but by then, Vegeta had already gotten up. Trunks watched with wide eyes as the woman slowly came down the stage with much applause and hollering from everyone else in the tavern. No sooner had she come down than she was met face-to-face with the Saiyan Prince himself. He eyed her up and down like she was a piece of meat, leering at her as the two exchanged some words. That's all it took for the woman to get closer to him, her hands going to his chest. Trunks blinked in surprise when Vegeta put his arm casually around the woman's waist and led her outside, behind the tavern.

"Wow, he works fast, huh," Trunks said, both awed and slightly repulsed.

"I should've known," Raditz grumbled, now seated and looking down at his red scouter in his hands, his nose bleeding. He seemed oblivious of the nosebleed as he frowned and tapped his scouter a few times. "Now my goddamn scouter won't turn back on."

Nappa just laughed at him. "Maybe if Vegeta is still in a good mood, he'll let you have some of her before he kills her."

Trunks blinked in surprise, before narrowing his eyes. "He's going to kill her? How do you know?"

"Because that's what he does," Nappa said with a nonchalant shrug, signaling someone for more drinks. "He screws them, and then he kills them. Says it's the only way he can ensure that they don't get pregnant and have his kid."

Trunks felt like he had been sucker punched in the stomach, the air knocked right out of him upon hearing the lengths his father was willing to go to. All just to ensure he never had any children. Did that mean that his mother had changed Vegeta's entire lifelong mindset, or had he been a mistake that his father had loathed from the very beginning right up until his death?

"He…would do all of that just to not have kids?" Trunks choked out with difficulty.

"Yeah, me and Nappa don't care," Raditz said with a shrug, finally slipping his red scouter back on. He licked the blood off his lips before wiping the rest off with his hand. "Vegeta, though? Don't even get him started on the subject. He gets pissed just thinking about it."

Trunks eyed his drink and frowned thoughtfully, forcing himself not to think about it. He had bigger things to worry about.

"So anyways, this _Ginyu Force_ … who taught them how to play rock-paper-scissors?" Trunks asked as nonchalantly as he could.

Raditz and Nappa glanced at each other, genuinely stumped by the question. Finally, Raditz snapped his fingers. "You know, they probably picked it up from Lentiz. He was the only other one I knew who would play that game."

"From who?" Trunks asked, leaning forward and paying attention.

"He was a guy who used to work for King Cold and then for Frieza. Traveled to a lot of planets and learned a lot about medicine and healing. They held him in the highest regard. He would help us recover and all that, when the rejuvenation chambers weren't up and running. Guy knew a lot," Nappa said with a shrug.

" _Knew_ a lot?" Trunks asked with a cringe.

"Yeah, Vegeta killed him one day after Frieza… well, let's just say that Vegeta killed him to spite Frieza. End of story," Raditz mumbled, reaching for his drink again.

Suddenly frustrated and angered at his father for killing off his only real lead, Trunks hissed out his next words before he could stop himself.

"Damn it, Father!"

* * *

Meanwhile, outside in the darkness of night, Vegeta violently shoved the erotic alien beauty face-first into the wall of the tavern. Ignoring the pained cry that resulted from the move, he pressed himself up against her from behind, ravishing the side of her neck relentlessly. She eagerly leaned back into him as he impatiently yanked her hair out of the way to explore her skin even more, both of them breathing heavily.

The Saiyan Prince suddenly stopped his rough onslaught when he saw a mark on her neck that he hadn't noticed until now. Narrowing his eyes in confusion, he pulled away from her enough to take a really good look at it.

"Wha-"

That's all Vegeta got out before his senses suddenly picked up something coming at him. Just as quickly, he caught her hand. He snorted when he saw that she had intended to sink a needle into him. Effortlessly, he crushed her hand to pieces, snickering when she screamed in pain as the needle fell to the ground.

" _Well now, you're not playing very nice, are you, Tuffle whore?"_ he whispered smoothly from behind her in her language. _"That's okay… I don't play nice either."_

He instantly spun the girl around and seized her by the throat, slamming her roughly against the wall, making her squeal in pain. Tears were streaming down her face from the pain of her shattered hand. Vegeta leaned in as close as he could, his cold eyes locked on her hazel ones.

" _Where is Ares?"_ he snarled dangerously.

" _I don't know, and even if I did, I would never tell you, Saiyan."_

She then spat in his face, hatred burning in her eyes for him. He chuckled, raising his free hand and casually wiping the spit off. His tail was now swishing back and forth behind him, the fur standing on end.

" _Is that a fact? You do realize that you bear the mark of the Tuffles on your skin?"_ he asked in a low tone.

" _What of it?"_ she challenged.

" _That mark has sealed your death, woman,"_ he sneered in her face. He eyed her up and down, his eyes darkening with both hatred and lust. He trailed his free hand down her body, his tail wrapping around one of her thighs as he smirked. _"But, perhaps, I will break you first before I kill you."_

He fisted a handful of her dark hair and brutally yanked her head to the side, chuckling as she yelped in pain. He leaned in closer and whispered against her skin, _"What do you say, Tuffle whore? Do you want to play?"_

" _Vegeta, my death has been sealed for a long time,"_ the erotic woman told him, a sly smile spreading on her face despite her pain. Vegeta pulled away a bit and frowned at the triumphant look in her eyes. _"And now that we have coupled, so has yours."_

Realization dawned on him. His jaw suddenly set angrily as he pulled away, one hand still grasping her neck with a steel grip. He was usually extremely careful, but this was definitely a new tactic that he hadn't anticipated. Scowling now, he gave a conceding nod, as if acknowledging a job well done. It wasn't often that someone got one up on him.

He grunted. _"Poisoned me, I see. So I was right. You Tuffles have no honor at all,"_ Vegeta said in a completely conversational tone, shaking his head in disappointment. _"Unfortunately for you, I am not afraid to die. But before I do, I will bring every last Tuffle down with me."_

His hand around her neck began to glow and pulse, making her scream as the heat from his hand started to sear into her flesh. Vegeta gave her a cruel smirk, watching her agony with maniacal delight.

" _And I think I will start with you…"_

* * *

The teenager's blue eyes widened when he realized what he said.

"Um…I…" Trunks started, desperately trying to think of what he could say to get out of this mess.

Suddenly, Raditz started laughing. "This kid is completely intoxicated! These drinks have fucked up his mind completely. He thinks Vegeta is his father!" he barked out, laughing.

Trunks forced out a laugh, smiling a little in relief. That is, until he glanced over and saw Nappa staring at him with more scrutiny than before. Nappa frowned and opened his mouth to say something when all three of their scouters suddenly lit up.

The three instantly turned in the direction Vegeta had walked out. A half-second later, there was an explosion outside, rocking the entire tavern. Drinks fell to the floor. Alarm rose into the air. Two particular aliens and one half-breed suddenly stood up.

A heartbeat later, Vegeta violently kicked the backdoor to the tavern open. Trunks swallowed heavily when he saw his father, a chill going down his spine. Vegeta's rage was pulsing throughout the entire tavern, his tail waving furiously behind him as he stalked over to the table where they were. He was covered in what could only be the woman's blood. It was on his face, splattered across his white armor, entrenched in his dark blue uniform, staining his white gloves. With the dark lighting, the Prince of all Saiyans looked more like the Prince of Death.

"The Tuffles know we are here," Vegeta informed them bluntly, his voice cold and detached of all emotion. His dark eyes were burning with murder and intended bloodshed. "Raditz. Nappa. Make sure no one leaves here alive. When you are finished here, purge the city. Everyone dies. Understand?"

The two Saiyans nodded. Vegeta shot his dark gaze over to Trunks, who was staring blankly at his father in stunned horror. There was just so much _blood_ , but Vegeta seemed completely oblivious of it as he stared back at Trunks.

"You, boy. Come with me. _Now_ ," Vegeta ordered, before turning and walking back the way he came.

Trunks hesitated momentarily as Nappa and Raditz immediately started putting Vegeta's orders into effect. Trunks watched in sickened fascination as the Saiyans mercilessly and methodically began to dismantle every alien in the tavern one at a time, without even using their ki. Screams filled the air and blood spread on the floor, the smell so potent that Trunks could almost taste it…

"I WON'T TELL YOU AGAIN, BOY!" Vegeta screamed, startling Trunks.

The teenager tore his eyes away from the carnage, before running over to his father. They walked outside, the nausea hitting Trunks hard when he saw the remains of the beauty on the ground. He choked back the urge to vomit, forcing himself to look away. Looking back at his father, he narrowed his eyes in confusion at the barrel Vegeta was now dragging behind him.

"What is that?" Trunks asked worriedly.

"Leverage," Vegeta mumbled hatefully, not looking back at the teenager.

Trunks frowned, but Vegeta's blue aura exploded and the Saiyan took off into the air before the teenager could get another word out. Trunks wasted no time and followed his father's lead, deep down relieved that it was now easier for him to fly. His strength was back, but he was troubled by something else. Frowning, his senses were picking up something different with Vegeta's ki. He didn't know what it was, couldn't put his finger on it exactly. The ki wasn't weaker, just… _different._

"You alright?" Trunks called out hesitantly. He was predictably ignored. The teenager sighed, before looking over his shoulder. He could see and feel explosions in the distance as Nappa and Raditz got to work. For some reason though, Vegeta was flying in the opposite direction.

Finally, Vegeta descended in front of an isolated little cabin. Trunks felt his chest tighten in déjà vu at the sight before him. This time, the cabin was even smaller and less sturdy than those in the village Vegeta decimated earlier.

Trunks' boot was barely sinking into the sand when Vegeta reared back and launched the barrel right at the cabin. It exploded on impact and left a huge dent in the wall, the side of the little cabin now drenched in alcohol.

"GET OUT HERE AT ONCE OR I WILL BURN YOU ALIVE!" Vegeta screamed. The livid prince started to relentlessly pace from side to side, his puffed out tail still swishing behind him, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. Most of the blood had come off him during flight, but there were still small traces of it in his uniform. Trunks watched him warily, not knowing what had triggered this sudden rage.

"What are we doing-"

"SILENCE!" Vegeta roared at the teenager. Trunks' mouth instantly snapped shut at the infuriated look his father briefly shot him. Vegeta didn't seem to have him in his sights right now, so he opted to just observe and not get involved in whatever this new situation was.

Finally, a meek and frightened blue-skinned, orange-haired alien emerged into the night. Trunks' eyes widened when he recognized him as the quiet and polite owner of the tavern, Uvi.

Vegeta stopped pacing and released a deep and animalistic snarl at the sight of him, the sound slicing through the night. Terrified, Uvi visibly began trembling with fear as Vegeta bared his teeth like a predator ready to make his kill.

"Treacherous fiend," Vegeta seethed, slowly advancing. "Known you half my life and you side with the enemy of my ancestors? Very, very bad move, old friend." He stopped walking and raised his right hand, his eyes burning with hatred.

"No!" Uvi gasped out, backing up in terror. "I didn't… I would never-"

"You did. And now, you will pay."

Vegeta fired a ki blast that disintegrated the alien's legs on the spot. The alien instantly fell to the dark sand with a howl of agony that seemed to resonate across the entire planet. Trunks' jaw dropped, his eyes filled with horror as Vegeta casually strolled over to the writhing alien in the sand.

Vegeta was raising his hand so it was over Uvi's face when Trunks grabbed his wrist. Vegeta coldly eyed the teenager out of the corner of his eye, feeling the strength in Trunks' grip.

"Stop this, Vegeta," Trunks pleaded. "He has a family."

Vegeta's eyes narrowed and lowered to the teenager's hand that was over his wrist. He stared at it for a few moments. The only sound was Uvi desperately trying to haul himself away to safety.

"The nrehi was quick to leave your system, I see. You're powerful, kid. I know this," Vegeta finally said in a low voice, closing his eyes as if it shamed him to admit it. Slowly, he began to rotate his head in an effort to crack his neck. "But hear me, boy. If it's true that my sentence has already been set, then rest assured, I am damn good and ready to bring you down with me."

Trunks blinked in surprise. "Your sentence? What are you talking about?"

Vegeta snarled and pulled his arm free, turning to give Trunks a glare that chilled the teenager. "The woman had venom in her, idiot. I am going to die one way or another, but _not_ before I bring every last Tuffle down with me. While I would rather you remain alive to defeat Frieza if I were to die, I can easily change that if you so desire."

Thunderstruck, Trunks took a step back. Venom? His father was poisoned? Of course… the venom in his system must have been the reason his ki felt so different. Trunks scowled and grit his teeth, anger flooding through him over the way his father's world worked.

No one to trust. Endless attempts on his life at every turn. Nonstop pain at the hands of Frieza.

Trunks was finally starting to understand.

Vegeta eyed his son with scorn, before turning back to the matter at hand. Trunks just watched in silence, the desire to intervene gone. He couldn't believe it, and was slightly horrified to admit it to himself, but he found that he wouldn't mind _too_ much if Vegeta made quick work of the obvious traitor in front of him. His scowl deepened as he shifted his weight from foot to foot, not fully comfortable with that realization…

Vegeta planted his boot on Uvi's throat and smirked. "Now now, stay with me," Vegeta said in an almost sing-song tone, watching the alien who was bleeding out at his feet. "I need you to tell me everything you know about the Tuffles."

"I…can't…say…" Uvi gasped out.

"Come now, good man, you can do it," Vegeta encouraged, his smirk growing. "What do you know?"

He was met with a stubborn silence. Trunks exhaled impatiently through his nose, silently willing the alien to just talk so this could be over fast.

"So you want to be a tough guy," Vegeta cocked his head to the side curiously. "Your physical pain tolerance is high, Uvi. I'm actually impressed!" he exclaimed with a laugh. He removed his boot from Uvi's throat and slowly turned his gaze over to the cabin, his dark eyes cold and scheming. "Hn. Perhaps I can get you to talk another way." Casually, Vegeta walked over to the cabin.

"Just tell him," Trunks hissed angrily, his blue eyes pleading as Uvi painfully glanced over at him. The alien was trembling uncontrollably. "Stop making this worse on yourself!"

"I can't," the alien whispered to him in a pained, raspy voice filled with regret.

Seconds later, Vegeta emerged from the cabin, brutally dragging a shrieking female blue alien with him by the hair.

"NO! Let her go!" Uvi screamed at him. "Please!"

Vegeta looked at the woman next to him who was trembling from sheer terror. She was trying desperately to free herself from his tight grip on her long, black hair, but it was impossible. Vegeta smirked, leering at her and letting his eyes wander down her body, his intent obvious.

"You know, I didn't quite get the chance to finish what I started with that Tuffle whore. Perhaps your wife would like to finish the job?" Vegeta asked curiously. He leaned in and took in the woman's scent as she struggled to get free of him. He licked his lips as she struggled, using his tail to haul her closer to him.

Trunks growled, fury suddenly coursing through him. This was too much. He could not and _would_ _not_ watch his father do this.

A light flickered on the glass screen of Vegeta's green scouter, making him instantly glance over at Trunks. He stared at the teenager in momentary shock, completely floored at the reading he was getting: 50,000!

"Enough!" the teenager screamed.

Vegeta blinked and shook his head, quickly replacing the shocked look on his face with a scowl.

 _Calm yourself, boy,_ Vegeta's voice suddenly rang in Trunks' mind. Trunks blinked in surprise, having sworn that he didn't see his father's lips move. _I won't touch this woman. I just want information from Uvi regarding the Tuffles. She is just leverage._

At the suspicious look Trunks was giving him, Vegeta rolled his eyes.

_You have my word, kid._

Trunks took a deep breath and relaxed a tiny bit as Uvi tried crawling over to them in vain, ignoring his agony when he saw the way Vegeta was holding his wife. "Please, she has nothing," he paused to cough up blood, tremors going through him. "…to do with this…" he continued weakly.

"Just tell me what I want to know, fool," Vegeta growled.

"Do you p-promise, to leave us in peace?"

"I promise," Vegeta replied automatically. He roughly threw the woman away from him, sending her crashing to the sand. His tail wrapped around his waist and he crossed his arms over his chest, watching with hardened eyes as the woman crawled over to her wounded husband. Trunks watched as well, his heart breaking for them. "Now talk, before I go inside and introduce myself to your son. I do so like children," Vegeta said with a cruel smirk.

"Ares tapped into F-F-Frieza's scouters. Tracking you for a long t-time now. It's how he found m-m-m-" Uvi closed his one good eye, the tremors racking him. Trunks looked away.

"He found you and what? Recruited a weakling like you to his side?" Vegeta sneered.

"No. Told me to tell him when y-you or your men came again. Th-th-threatened me and my f-family if I didn't."

"You told him and he sent that woman to kill me," Vegeta finished, reaching a hand up and rubbing his chin thoughtfully as Uvi nodded. "Hn. What a coward," Vegeta mumbled in disgust to himself, falling into thought. Trunks found himself silently agreeing.

"Didn't know she was p-p-poisoned," Uvi insisted, his voice pleading.

Vegeta snarled and began advancing again. "Where is he?" he demanded threateningly.

"R-R-Rith-"

"Rithica?" Trunks and Vegeta both asked in surprise. Uvi gave a weak nod. Vegeta tilted his back and released an incensed and slightly insane howl to the night sky.

"I _SWEAR!_ When I get my hands on that no-good coward, I will tear him to fucking pieces," the prince seethed, beginning his livid pacing again as he activated the communications on his scouter. Trunks watched him carefully, sighing with relief when he saw that Vegeta now seemed to be completely ignoring them all.

"Is it done?" Vegeta growled into the scouter, turning away from all of them. Trunks glanced back over at the helpless aliens, wincing when he saw that they were trying desperately to get back inside their home and away from the ruthless prince. He snuck a look over at his father and frowned, before heading over to help.

"Yes, Vegeta. The city is clean," Nappa's voice cackled in with a laugh. "Not one of these ugly freaks was left alive."

Uvi was trying to drag himself to safety with his wife trying her best to help him. Trunks squatted down and offered a hand, flinching a little when they both recoiled from him in terror. "I just want to help," the teenager whispered, his heart aching when he heard a child begin to cry from inside the cabin. No one deserved this. "Please, let me help you."

Vegeta turned so his profile was facing them, watching the scene out of his peripheral vision. He scowled, his eyes darkening.

"Ares is on Rithica," Vegeta informed his men in a gruff tone, turning away again and staring off into the night.

"V-Vegeta, h-he is going to kill us all," Uvi whispered to Trunks, who shook his head adamantly.

"No, he promised he wouldn't. Vegeta's a man of his word," Trunks insisted, easily helping him back into the cabin. Trunks bit back his nausea as the alien's warm, dark blue blood got on his hands and his uniform. He looked up at the alien's wife, and saw tears that made her golden eyes look like a shimmering sunset. Vegeta's darkness was consuming her alive, fear for her family paralyzing her. Trunks' jaw set and he had to look away.

"Well that's convenient," Raditz said over their scouters with a snicker. "We'll just take out the entire planet and be rid of this little problem."

"No. We cannot destroy the planet. It must be purged," Vegeta growled. "Besides, I won't dignify him with such a quick death. He is _mine_ ," he spat out bitterly. "Report to your space pods at once. We are going to Rithica immediately."

Vegeta deactivated the communications on his scouter, before taking the scouter off. He reached up with his other hand, rubbing his eyes with two fingers. Taking a deep breath, he concentrated completely on his energy reserves. In tune with himself, he could feel the venom beginning to spread through his body. Frowning, he wondered how long he could last. It was possible that a rejuvenation chamber could rid the poison from his system, but it was hit or miss with poisons. In any case, to return back to base having fallen prey to Tuffle poison _again_ , _without_ killing the Tuffles, _without_ doing his purges, would mean sure death. Not even his favoritism with Frieza would get him out of such a colossal failure. No, he had to go forward and go after Ares, but he could afford absolutely no more mistakes if he was going to make it out of this alive.

Suddenly aware that he was being watched, Vegeta instantly lowered his hand and sneered over his shoulder at Trunks. "Are you done?" he barked out impatiently, one of his eyes twitching as he raised his scouter and slipped it back on, his hand slightly shaking.

Trunks frowned, hesitating as he slowly walked up to his father. "Yeah… are you sure you're alright, Vegeta?" Trunks asked, trying not to show his sudden concern. His father's ki, usually steady and unwavering like a rock, had now dipped a small amount. The drop was hardly noticeable, but it was still concerning.

Vegeta snorted. "Kid, if you think some venom is going to bring me down, better think again. Now let's go, take the lead," he said, motioning for Trunks to walk ahead of him. Trunks frowned, hesitating, but finally doing as he was told. He was unaware of the smirk on his father's face when the teenager turned his back on him.

_Time to start toughening you up, kid._

The teenager finally relaxed a little when he felt Vegeta walking after him. Trunks was about to take to the air when he chanced a glance over his shoulder.

He turned just in time to see Vegeta release a ki blast right at the cabin. Immediately, the cabin was engulfed in flames. Enraged, Trunks crossed the distance between them in a hurry and shoved his father hard in the chest. Vegeta had already braced himself for it, but still had to take a few steps back from the force of the teenager's shove.

"What are you doing!" Trunks screamed at him. "You promised him!"

"Did I now?" Vegeta asked innocently, his smirk growing at the incensed look in Trunks' eyes. "Silly me. Where are my manners? I must have forgotten."

The blue of the teenager's eyes was burning with a ferocity as dark as the night, and Vegeta felt a tingle of genuine excitement crawl through his skin at the sight of it. Yes, if he could break this boy, he would have the ultimate weapon on his side to overthrow Frieza (once the Tuffles were out of the way and his venom was gone, anyways). And with Frieza out of the way, it would only be a matter of time until he killed the boy, rose to power, and took command of the universe.

Just like he was always destined to.

"You say you have honor and pride," Trunks sneered in Vegeta's face, infuriated with that maddening smirk that never wavered from his father's face. "But your word and promises don't mean a goddamn thing!"

"Promises are meant to be broken," Vegeta said calmly, staring his son right in the eye. "My father taught me that lesson as a child."

Trunks blinked in surprise, his anger suddenly giving way to confusion. "What?"

"I said, promises are meant to be broken," Vegeta repeated again, leaning in so close his nose was almost touching his son's. "And if you don't like it, then do something about it, kid," he challenged in a low voice.

Trunks leaned back, hissing and clenching his fists tightly as Vegeta laughed loudly at his reaction. The prince smirked and tilted his head back and to the side, raising one finger to the side of his jaw. He tapped it tauntingly.

"Come on, boy. I'll even give you a free shot," he challenged. Trunks growled, highly tempted as Vegeta laughed at his hesitation. "What's the matter? Don't have the guts? Don't tell me your mother raised a damn cowa-"

Vegeta hit the sand so hard, the sand seemed to practically explode around him from the impact. He blinked a few times, dazed as he slowly raised one hand to his jaw. The move had been so fast, he hadn't even seen it coming. Trunks' eyes widened in realization of the blow he had just landed.

"I'm sorry," he immediately said as Vegeta slowly pulled himself up so he was sitting.

Vegeta stared blankly at the teenager, his eyes wide in stunned amazement. His power was _extraordinary_ for his age! Yes, this boy was definitely an ally worth investing in. He grunted, one hand cradling his jaw for a few seconds. He massaged it a bit, before turning and spitting out a mouthful of blood to the sand. Trunks winced, already seeing the swelling on his father's face, even in the dark. His guilt intensified when he felt Vegeta's ki weaken just a little, tiny bit more after the blow.

Vegeta looked back at him, staring at him with a guarded expression. Finally, he snorted in amusement. "Perhaps there is still hope for you after all, kid," he said in a smug voice.

Trunks blinked in surprise when he saw the almost triumphant look Vegeta was giving him as he got back up to his feet.

"What?"

A cunning smirk spread over Vegeta's face as he put a firm hand on Trunks' shoulder. "Kid, we are the last of the Saiyans. We have to stick together, which means you have to get over your soft-heartedness. Uvi was a traitor and thus had to die. Make sense?" he asked, speaking as though he were addressing a small child.

"But, he was your friend-"

Vegeta threw his head back and laughed long and hard at that. He looked back at Trunks with clear amusement, shaking his head as if Trunks had told him the best joke in the universe. "Foolish boy. I have no _friends._ The third survival lesson you must learn is: don't trust anyone. Now, let's get going, yes? I have a date with the Tuffles that I musn't be late for."

He patted Trunks on the shoulder and gave him another triumphant smirk, before turning and taking off into the air. Trunks frowned at his father's parting words, before taking a deep breath. One of his eyes started twitching, and he reached up and rubbed at it before reluctantly following after Vegeta.

The third lesson was one he was very quickly learning all on his own.


	8. History Rewritten

The first thing Trunks noticed when he climbed out of his space pod on Rithica was that there was finally a semblance of daylight. He instinctively looked up, trying to see where the sun was, but it was obscured by large, thick trees that created a tangled overhead. They were in what looked like some type of jungle. Instead of seeing the usual green that he would expect on Earth, the jungle had a blue coloring that was almost welcoming. The air was thick with an intense humidity, the likes of which Trunks had never felt before. He climbed out of the deep, dirt crater his space pod formed, already breaking into a sweat from the heat.

Vegeta and Nappa were already running their scouters when Trunks finally got out of the crater. Nappa looked over his shoulder and frowned at the teenager, making Trunks swallow heavily as he dusted himself off. He had almost forgotten about his slip back in the tavern, but clearly, Nappa hadn't…

"All clear. No one with a power level over 10, and no one within 100 krios," Nappa said, pressing the button on his scouter, looking from Trunks to Vegeta.

Vegeta turned his head to the side. "Raditz," he ordered harshly. "Give me the updated report on Liyana at once. I need to see what we're dealing with next."

"Don't you want to wait until we're done here first?" Nappa asked. Vegeta shot him a glare, and the large Saiyan instantly added, "Then again, it wouldn't hurt to see what we're up against next."

"I have it here." Raditz brushed past Trunks, knocking the teenager off balance a bit as he hurried over to Vegeta, holding out a black handheld electronic device. "Just got the update now."

Vegeta snatched the device out of his subordinate's hand, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his other hand. He looked down at the device, scowling and pressing a few buttons on it. It beeped and he watched as numbers began scrolling on the device. Trunks walked up, seeing the reflection of the scrolling numbers in the green glass of Vegeta's scouter. The teenager shot a nervous glance over at Nappa, but the burly Saiyan had his arms crossed over his chest, waiting for Vegeta to say something.

The numbers finally stopped scrolling. As soon as they did, Trunks felt Vegeta's ki weaken a substantial amount. Almost immediately, Vegeta raised his hand to his chest. The prince's facial expression still didn't change as he quickly recovered, making it look like he was just adjusting his armor. Trunks let out a shaky breath, trying his hardest not to show his growing concern.

"You're sure that this is the latest report on Liyana?" Vegeta finally asked in a guarded tone, his eyes glued to the readings he was getting.

"Yes," Raditz answered, looking confused by the question. "What's the problem?"

Trunks could hear the sounds of flying insects in the air, breaking the suffocating silence between the four of them as they stood in a circle together. Nappa and Raditz exchanged a look, both of them wondering what Vegeta was seeing in the report that was making the prince lose himself in thought.

Finally, Vegeta grunted. "I have to strategize on how best to use this information," Vegeta finally said, his scowl deepening. "You three stay here. Raditz, find something to eat. It might be a while before we're back on base."

Nappa frowned. "But, shouldn't we start-"

He was instantly silenced by Vegeta punching him hard in the stomach. Nappa gasped and doubled over, falling to his knees in front of his prince. Trunks winced, but Raditz didn't react. He was as accustomed to Vegeta's violence as he was to breathing air.

"We start this purge when I fucking say so. Understand?" Vegeta snarled venomously, before looking pointedly at Raditz. "Now go hunt. I will return."

Raditz had hardly gotten the "s" sound out in the word "yes" when Vegeta was already out of sight. The prince moved through the exotic plants and trees of the jungle with graceful speed, as though he had traversed this jungle a million times before and knew every inch of it. Trunks hesitated, wanting to go after him but not wanting to incur his wrath. The teenager sighed, brushing his sweaty hair out of his face.

"Alright, well, I'll go see what's worth eating around here," Raditz grumbled, turning to head off in the opposite direction of Vegeta. Trunks glanced at Nappa, who was slowly straightening, and decided he'd rather go with Raditz than risk an interrogation. Clearing his throat, the teenager slowly followed after Raditz.

"Um, you want some company?" Trunks asked sheepishly. Raditz looked over his shoulder at the teenager, giving him a disgusted look.

"I don't need your damn help, half-breed," Raditz sneered. "So just stay here."

"But, Raditz, I can…" Trunks' voice trailed off when Raditz took off, not letting him get in another word. The large Saiyan brushed past the plants with a silent stealth that left Trunks extremely impressed. The teenager frowned, before slowly turning around to face Nappa directly. It was time to face the music.

The hybrid Saiyan stared at the full-blooded Saiyan, both of them standing in complete silence. Trunks had his fists tightly clenched, his muscles tensed as he waited for Nappa to say something. But the larger Saiyan just continued staring, a scrutinizing look on his face.

Trunks was taking the silence as a chance to think his strategy through. His first line of defense was to claim that Nappa had clearly had too much to drink, and he had never referred to Vegeta as his father. His physical resemblance to the Saiyan Prince could easily be filed away as nothing but mere coincidence. And if that didn't work, then he would simply deny it until he was blue in the face. If Vegeta had truly gone through such extremes to avoid having children, then the prince would never believe that Trunks was his son anyways. Yes, he could get out of it…

Finally, Nappa snorted and shook his head, an amazed look coming over his face.

"Ya look just like him. I shoulda known." Trunks frowned and opened his mouth to object, but Nappa raised one hand and gave a waving motion. "Relax, kid. I won't tell Vegeta."

Trunks blinked in surprise, the tension in his body melting away as confusion took its place. "What?"

Nappa's expression turned serious. "I promised King Vegeta that I would look after his lineage."

A look of deep shame settled over the large Saiyan's features as he looked away, thoughts of failure running through his mind as he remembered years of torture and abuse that Vegeta had endured at the hands of Frieza. It was the type of torture that he, a Saiyan Elite himself and former commander of the Saiyan army, had sworn to prevent but had been completely powerless to stop. He frowned, his eyes filled with regret.

"Of course, there was only so much I could do against someone like that freak, Frieza. But, I made a promise to my king. And I'm gonna do my best to keep it." He looked back at Trunks, and the teenager was almost taken aback by the look of respect Nappa was giving him. "Even if the royal lineage of our people now includes a half-breed."

"I… I don't know what you're talking about," Trunks said, his unsteady voice giving the truth away.

Nappa laughed loudly. "I won't tell him if ya don't want me to, kid. You're no threat like I thought you were. Though…" he crossed his arms and looked Trunks over, disbelief in his eyes, "Vegeta definitely must have been young to still be merciful with your mother. You _must_ have been from one of his first times."

Trunks scowled and looked down, setting his jaw, wishing he could take his slip back. Without it, he doubted Nappa would have put all the pieces together. He took a deep, calming breath, and closed his eyes. He had to surrender to this new failure, and accept the fate and consequences that went with it.

"Swear to me on your life that you won't tell Vegeta," he finally said, opening his eyes to make eye contact with the larger Saiyan.

"If Vegeta asks me directly, I _won't_ lie to him, kid," Nappa stated seriously. "He never believes me when I lie, and he gets pissed when I do… but, if he doesn't ask… then I see no reason to bring it to his attention. He has enough on his plate," he added, looking off in the direction Vegeta had gone in with a concerned look on his face.

Trunks frowned, wondering how much Nappa knew about the venom in Vegeta's body. He was about to ask when Raditz came through the bushes and into the small clearing, carrying a huge, dead animal on his back. The Saiyan dropped the animal to the ground with a loud thud in front of Nappa and Trunks, making the teenager cringe in disgust. The animal resembled a cheetah in its feline shape, and it was covered in dark blue fur.

"Nothing like some good heat to remind us of the homeland," Raditz said with a smirk, soaked in sweat. He lifted one hand and fired a ki blast towards the ground, immediately starting a fire. Raditz made a fist, controlling the spread of the fire, before looking over at the animal he caught. "Well, best get this thing cooked before Vegeta comes back."

"This will barely be enough for the three of _us,_ Raditz," Nappa said with a frown as Raditz dragged the animal over into the fire. "And then there's still Vegeta who also needs to eat."

"That's alright. I'm not hungry," Trunks said with a scowl, crossing his arms over his chest, not noticing Nappa's small smirk at seeing the familiar mannerism. The last time Trunks had eaten with the Saiyans had soured him on the whole experience. Though the teenager was practically starving, he knew he could last a little longer without eating.

"Suit yourself, half-breed…"

* * *

As soon as Vegeta knew he was out of hearing range, he clutched his chest and collapsed to his knees, finally giving into the pain he had been hiding in front of his men. Practically panting now, he crawled using his other hand, which was still holding Raditz's electronic device, until he came up to a wide tree. The prince shifted so he was sitting up against it, squeezing his eyes shut and waiting for the burning pain in his chest to subside.

After an agonizing minute, the pain mercifully started to dull. Vegeta scowled and leaned his head back against the tree, his breathing finally slowing down. He stayed still for a few minutes longer, letting his strength slowly come back while he wondered what the fuck kind of venom he had coursing through his blood. If the Tuffles had not been on his hit list before, they would have certainly cemented their place after this tactic. If there was one thing he absolutely hated, it was when an enemy resorted to poison. This was hardly the first time he'd been poisoned; in fact, he had been poisoned just last week by the Tuffles. Prior to that though, he had to go back to his childhood to remember the last time he had fallen prey to poison.

Vegeta opened one eye and looked down at the electronic device in his right hand. He could read the latest report on Liyana clear as day, but he had never seen anything like it.

An average fighting power of _78,000_? In a population of _millions?_

With the Tuffles breathing down their necks?

With poison running through his blood?

Sweat ran into his eye, making Vegeta take his scouter off and toss it to the side. He started rubbing both eyes in an effort to concentrate. He needed a plan, and he needed it immediately. Nappa and Raditz were loyal, but they were brutes. The boy was powerful, but ignorant of the cruelty that defined the universe he lived in.

As always, any hope of survival rested squarely on his shoulders…

* * *

Trunks was sitting crosslegged in the grass, frowning as he watched Nappa and Raditz hungrily rip into the animal Raditz hunted down. He mostly kept his eyes on Nappa, silently wondering if he made a mistake with admitting that Nappa was right. The large Saiyan had outright said he would tell Vegeta the truth if the prince pressed him for it. Trunks couldn't think of a situation when his father would ask such a thing, but it still made him uneasy.

"So where do you think Ares is hiding?" Raditz asked with a mouthful of semi-cooked meat.

"I don't know," Nappa answered, squatting before the fire. He tossed a bone into the flames. "I still think we shoulda just destroyed the planet. Damn what Frieza wants."

Raditz snickered. "We gotta purge it, Nappa. Orders are orders."

"Yeah, well, the longer we let the Tuffles live, the stronger they become," Nappa grumbled. He left out the part where he wished Vegeta would've taken the Tuffles more seriously when they first learned that there were survivors. Raditz nodded in agreement. "It's only a matter of time before they'll want to start a war."

"There will be no war," a gruff voice suddenly cut in. "The Tuffles will never get the chance."

All three looked over just in time to see Vegeta stepping into the small clearing. They all instantly stood up as the prince threw back the handheld electronic device back to Raditz, who barely got a hand up in time to catch it. Vegeta scowled and crossed his arms, looking over at the fire as Raditz looked down at the device.

"An average power level of 78,000! That's impossible!" Raditz yelled, his eyes wide.

"What! That can't be right!" Nappa cried, going over to take a look as Trunks watched Vegeta as nonchalantly as he could. His ki was notably weaker now, and the teenager knew that was definitely not a good sign. If Vegeta was anxious or concerned though, he wasn't showing it.

"It is, and we must prepare for it at once. The boy and I will stay here on Rithica," Vegeta said harshly, shifting his dark gaze over to Trunks, instantly making the teenager uncomfortable. "We will complete the purge here to get his hands dirty, and we will take care of the problem with the Tuffles once and for all. As for you, Nappa," he said, shifting his eyes over to Nappa, "I want you to go to Liyana ahead of us. Scope out the planet and find us a good spot where we can hide, until we're ready to attack. We'll know once we're there if we should go with a divide and conquer approach, or simply wait until we have a full moon to take them out. In any case, don't fuck up and get yourself killed before we even arrive, Nappa," he growled threateningly. "Once the boy and I have completed the assignment here and eliminated the Tuffles once and for all, we will meet you on Liyana."

Nappa nodded. "Yes, Vegeta."

"What about me?" Raditz asked with a frown. Vegeta scowled and looked over at Raditz, staring at him for some time. Trunks glanced over at Nappa, but he was already heading over to his space pod. The teenager let out a sigh of relief at the sight of him leaving without having words with Vegeta. It seemed like this time, Nappa might really be on his side.

"How sure are you that Kakarot is still alive, Raditz?"

Vegeta's words were like a needle scratching off a record, immediately drawing Trunks' attention again. Raditz visibly straightened at the prince's question, his expression neutral and guarded, but his eyes bright with excitement and anticipation.

"I know he's still alive," Raditz affirmed.

"Hn," Vegeta grunted, looking over at the fire again. "Having another Saiyan on our side with the ability to make the Oozaru transformation would be useful…" he mused out loud, his scowl growing more pronounced. "Even if he's much weaker than you, it would be good to have his help on Liyana." He looked over at Raditz again, "What planet was he sent to?"

"Planet Earth, galaxy #7, south sector," Raditz automatically answered. Trunks tried his best to keep an impassive look on his face, but his heart was pounding.

Vegeta's scowl hardened even more as he scoffed. "The south sector is filled with useless planets. Small wonder Frieza never found him there, if he is truly alive."

"Hey, Kakarot _is_ alive!" Raditz growled indignantly. Vegeta raised an eyebrow at his tone, and Trunks instinctively tensed, waiting for the retaliation blow. Raditz instantly cleared his throat, already backing up, "I'm sorry Vegeta-"

Vegeta punched Raditz in the face so hard, the large Saiyan was sent flying back throughthe base of a tree, coming to slam against another one several feet back. Fruits and leaves immediately dropped down onto his face, while the first tree fell over to the side with a loud crash, away from them. Almost as soon as the tree landed, Nappa's space pod fired up and took off into the sky. Trunks glanced back over at it, scowling and wishing he had paid more attention. If he had focused on listening to the large Saiyan, he could have heard any special command needed to set new destination coordinates…

"Disrespect me ONE MORE goddamn time, and I will tear you to pieces and feed you to the birds. Do I make myself clear?" Vegeta snarled dangerously. Raditz nodded mutely, brushing the blood off his face from the blow. Vegeta bent down and picked up the electronic device, casually brushing it clean as he straightened. He frowned. "Now then. I want you to go and see for yourself if Kakarot is still alive. If he is, bring him back. The south sector is far so we should have purged Liyana by the time you return, but it will still be good to have more hands for similar assignments in the future… and it will _also_ be good to have help taking Frieza down," Vegeta said with a cunning smirk.

Raditz slowly pulled himself up, before smirking himself and nodding. "I will bring him back, no matter what it takes. I swear it."

"Erm… why don't I go with Raditz to help him bring Kakarot back?"

Vegeta and Raditz both looked over at Trunks in surprise. The teenager chuckled, trying his best to seem nonchalant. Finally, Raditz scoffed. "For what? To sing for me when I'm bored? You're useless to me on a mission like this, half-breed."

Trunks brushed his lavender, sweat-soaked hair out of his face, frowning at Raditz. "I could damn well hold my own-"

"No," Vegeta cut in, glaring intensely at Trunks. "He's right. You stay here, boy. You lack the necessary backbone to get Kakarot to join us. Raditz doesn't. Besides, Raditz is Kakarot's brother. This assignment is his, _not_ yours." The prince looked over at Raditz, not catching the disappointment on the teenager's face. "Now then, Raditz. I want you to keep your communications activated on your scouter the entire time you're on Planet Earth. I want to hear everything that goes on while you're there. Understand?"

Raditz was just picking up his scouter when he heard what Vegeta said. He scowled and tried turning it on. "I don't know, Vegeta. My scouter's been acting up since we were back at Uvi's. The comms come in and out."

He very wisely left out that it was Vegeta's fault that his scouter was acting up.

Sighing in exasperation, Vegeta removed his own scouter. "Take mine then. I will use yours for now and get it replaced once we are back on base." Vegeta tossed Raditz his green scouter, and Raditz tossed Vegeta his red one. Both Saiyans slipped on their new scouters. "I will think of something to not raise Frieza's suspicion over your departure. Now go, and bring me Kakarot."

"Yes, Vegeta," Raditz said, a smirk of eagerness on his face as he headed over to his space pod. Trunks kept his eyes on his father, though he was using his heightened hearing to hear any useful verbal command Raditz might use, so he could use it as well…

"And as for _you_ ," Vegeta said, turning back to Trunks again. He kept his eyes down, pressing some keys on the black electronic device in his hands. Trunks snuck a subtle glance over at Raditz, who was climbing into his space pod. When he looked back at Vegeta, there was a hologram of a planet floating over the device in Vegeta's hand.

Trunks blinked in surprise at the green and blue pixelated planet that was slowly rotating in between him and his father. "What is that?"

"This is Rithica, the planet we're on," Vegeta explained. He pressed another button, and the hologram of the planet suddenly lost all terrain. It was now a rotating blue sphere divided up with white grid lines. Vegeta raised one hand and pressed his index finger to the hologram. Instantly, a blinking red spot appeared. "This spot here is where we are right now." With his finger, the prince divided the planet perfectly in half, a pulsing green line appearing where he touched the hologram. "The north half of the planet is mine. You're going to take the south, kid." He pointed away from the hologram, behind Trunks. "South is that way. Let me know when it's done through the communications on your scouter."

Trunks nodded, even though deep down, he knew that he wasn't going to actually go through with this purge. "Sure thing, Vegeta…"

The teenager's voice trailed off when his sensitive hearing picked up Raditz saying, "Set destination to Planet Earth, galaxy #7, south sector."

Trunks then heard the now familiar sound of the space pod starting up again. He frowned. What the fuck? That's all he had to say? He was vaguely aware of Vegeta still talking, but he absent-mindedly looked away, thinking of whether or not he should wait until Vegeta was out of sight and try following Raditz's example. Maybe if Vegeta hadn't set the destination already, he could set it without needing an overwri—

Vegeta violently struck Trunks in the face with the handheld electronic device, breaking the device to pieces in the process. Trunks' head was whipped to the side, and he took a step back, a trickle of blood coming from a gash near his right eye.

"Pay attention, boy. I fucking hate repeating myself," Vegeta sneered, his tone scathing. Trunks glared at his father, but said nothing, biting back the rush of anger flooding through him. His anger was quick to leave though when he sensed Vegeta's ki drop after delivering the blow. Vegeta closed his eyes and cracked his neck, the veins on his neck and face all strained with tension. The prince looked back at his son, his dark eyes distant as he detached himself from his pain. It took everything Trunks had not to look concerned as Vegeta continued, "Now then. If you run into anyone, you ask them if they are with the Tuffles before you do anything. If they are, let me know immediately and do not let them go. I will come to where you are and handle them personally."

"What if they're not with the Tuffles?"

"Then kill them," Vegeta said casually.

"I'm sorry, but I just…" Trunks frowned and shook his head. "It's just, it's _wrong_."

Vegeta opened his mouth to say something, but stopped, thinking about it for a few seconds. Finally, he looked at Trunks with a seriousness that chilled the teenager. "Look, boy. Frieza is going to sell this planet on the galactic market after we're done purging it. Do you know what he will do if he finds survivors?"

Trunks slowly shook his head, already knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

"The men who can fight will join the army. If they refuse, they will die. The women and female children will become sex slaves for the top lieutenants, to be used and killed once they have exhausted their purpose. The male children will join the army and be raised within it." Vegeta clenched his fists tightly, before crossing them over in front of his chest, his eyes filled with a cold hatred that had been growing and festering his entire life. "Now I don't know what kind of pampered world you grew up in, but in _this_ world, kid, death is a better alternative to everything I just told you. Now do as I fucking say, and let me know when you're done. Do I make myself clear?"

Trunks tried to speak, but he was having a hard time finding the words. Up until now, everything was so clear to him. Right and wrong, black and white. He had been raised his entire life to know that killing was wrong. Killing was what the androids did, not him. Only the evil killed. Yes, he had killed on the last planet, but he had done it to save himself. He needed to stay alive to save his home. But after hearing the fates he would leave any survivors to, how could death _not_ be a mercy? The teenager's head was swimming, his foundation of morality turned upside down.

Vegeta smirked when he saw the horrified teenager lose himself in thought. The only truth he had told Trunks was the fate of men who survived a purge. The women and children were almost always instantly killed, deemed worthless by Frieza. The only male children who joined the army were either the sons of soldiers (they joined by default, regardless of the father's opinion on the matter; yet another reason he would never have children), or those children who showed such an extraordinary potential to be great warriors that Frieza could not pass them by.

Like him.

But the half-breed didn't need to know that. If it took a few little lies on Vegeta's part to break the boy faster, then it was a small price to pay.

"Now then. You have the south, and I have the north. Let me know if you find the Tuffles. If you don't find them, then just let me know when you're done."

"But, how will I know if…" Trunks' voice trailed off when he saw Vegeta take off. "…if someone lies and says they're the Tuffles just to live," he finished with a sigh. The teenager wiped the darkened, sweaty lavender hair out of his face, glancing over at his space pod. Oh, he was tempted to try an escape…

He looked back over at the direction Vegeta went in, and decided he would stick around just long enough to make sure his father could overcome this venom. With him there, Vegeta would only purge half of the planet, and that meant he could get help faster to cure him of his venom. The teenager glanced over at the space pod again. Technically, he had a lot of time.

He could afford to wait it out a little longer.

Trunks then took off running through the jungle in the opposite direction of Vegeta. He hadn't run a mile before feeling like he was going to suffocate from the intense heat. It was completely smothering, and made him wonder just how hot it would be if he wasn't in the shade of the blue trees of the jungle. He kept moving, dodging plants and trees and wishing he had his sword. He could have just sliced his way through.

About an hour later, he was finally out of the jungle. Mercifully, the heat had lifted, but it was only marginally better as Trunks slowed to a walk. He frowned as he looked at the wide clearing he was now in, endless stretches of blue grass in front of him. He looked up at the sky, blinking in surprise when he saw that Rithica had two suns.

Now the heat made more sense. Looking down at the black that he was wearing, Trunks decided it had to go.

He was slipping his armor back on over his bare chest when his senses suddenly picked up something. He looked up and into the distance, having felt a huge power level but only for a moment. It wasn't his father, he knew that much. Hurrying, Trunks tucked his belongings down his armor, grabbing his scouter and slipping it back on.

"Vegeta?" he asked, turning on the communications in his scouter. "Vegeta, are you there?"

Trunks heard nothing but static. Cursing quietly when he remembered that Raditz's scouter had been malfunctioning, he decided to go check it out himself. It seemed odd to him that Vegeta and Nappa wouldn't have caught such a huge power.

Trunks ran nonstop for two hours until the grass finally gave out on a large cliff, the heat gratefully giving out a little as well as one of the suns set. He stood at the edge of the cliff, his eyes wide as he stared down at the city that was below. It wasn't large, but he could tell a technologically advanced city when he saw one. Stepping off the edge, Trunks slid down the wall of the cliff, easily balancing through the dirt and rock expertly as though he were snowboarding. Once he reached the bottom, he hesitantly approached the city, trying to pick up something with his senses and also running his scouter at the same time.

He picked up nothing using both.

 _Hn, must be deserted… who could blame them with this heat,_ Trunks thought irritably as he walked closer. The dirt and rock under his feet gradually became concrete, which gradually became clean and polished stone as he stepped foot into the city. He could see futuristic vehicles on what looked like a city street, but the place seemed entirely deserted.

That is, until Trunks took about three steps down the city street, when he was suddenly surrounded.

"Trimalo!"

" _Invader!"_ the translation ran through his red scouter.

Trunks calmly raised both hands, not walking another step. There were at least twenty men surrounding him, having come out of nowhere. Each man was wearing a white, metallic looking suit complete with helmets that made them look like space troopers. They were all holding enormous looking, futuristic rifles that were all aimed at him. Trunks eyed them all carefully, already deciding that if they fired on him, he would take them all apart. He could see their eyes through glass shields on their helmets, and was shocked by the hatred he saw in them.

"If you fire on me, I guarantee you that you will all regret it," Trunks swore to them, his blue eyes cold and his voice deadly serious. These people must have been the Tuffles, and they had poisoned his father in a cowardly move. Trunks was a bit taken aback to find that he needed very little provocation to kill them all.

He frowned. Had Vegeta influenced him so much, so quickly? He couldn't be like his father… clearing his throat, he started over.

"If we could just talk, then no one needs to die today."

They all took another step closer to him, raising their weapons higher and all of them yelling at once. Trunks braced himself for action when a voice suddenly rang out in a foreign tongue. The translation immediately ran through on Trunks' scouter.

" _Everyone, back down, NOW!"_

Instantly, everyone surrounding Trunks lowered their weapons. They all looked over as a lone figure emerged from a tall building, stepping out onto the city road. Trunks scowled as the men drew away, his eyes locked on the figure who was approaching. He looked human, with red hair and piercing green eyes. He was dressed very casually, in dark blue trousers and a very light, white martial arts gi top.

"Who are you?" Trunks demanded, lowering his hands and eyeing the symbol engraved in the man's top.

"So you speak the universal tongue," the man said in a distinct accent, smiling. He spread his arms out wide, as if welcoming him. "I assure you, boy, you have nothing to fear here."

"You didn't answer my question," Trunks replied. One of the men on the side growled and raised his weapon, pointing it at the teenager, but the red-haired man waved him down.

"Well, I do think it's a bit rude that you come into _our_ city, with the intent of hostility, demanding answers from us. Wouldn't you agree?" the red-haired man told Trunks with a chuckle.

"I am here searching for the Tuffles."

"Well here we are," the red-haired man said, his smile turning into a smirk. "How can we serve you, boy?"

Trunks gave the man a wary look. Was that a threat, or was this guy really being polite? Shifting uncomfortably, he said, "I want to speak to the man named Ares. Is he here?"

"No. He is my brother, and he is not on this planet right now. My name is Miron. May I ask what business you have with my brother, boy?" he asked curiously, crossing his arms over his chest.

Trunks hesitated, before deciding to just speak from his heart. The opportunity was here at his fingertips, and he had to take it. He could end everything, right here, right now. Straightening his back, blue eyes meeting green, Trunks spoke confidently and smoothly.

"I want to discuss an agreement to end the conflict between the Tuffles and the Saiyans once and for all."

Miron raised one eyebrow in curiosity, his green eyes darkening ever so slightly. "Well, such an epic conversation cannot be held out here, now can it, boy? Come, let's go inside where we will be out of the suns," he said with a smile, turning and heading back down the street towards the building he had exited.

Trunks followed after Miron, glancing back suspiciously at the men they were leaving behind. Even though he had stumbled upon the ancient enemy of his people, and even though Vegeta's words of " _don't trust anyone"_ were ringing in his ears, Trunks was feeling surprisingly calm. Mostly because he honestly didn't think these guys were much of a threat to him. Not when he had his Super Saiyan transformation up his sleeve.

" _Gentlemen, we have a guest,"_ Trunks' scouter translated as he stepped inside after Miron. There were eight men in the room dressed in loose white clothing, all sitting at a round table. They all instantly stood up when seeing that Miron hadn't come back alone.

" _He wears a Saiyan uniform,"_ one of them sneered, glaring at Trunks.

" _He is no Saiyan, he has no tail,"_ another man added. _"And he does not have black hair."_

" _Who is he?"_

" _He is a pure heart,"_ Miron said calmly, a smirk spreading over his face that Trunks couldn't see. Trunks frowned, not knowing what exactly Miron meant by calling him a "pure heart", but it seemed to relax the vibe in the room. _"As I said, he is merely a guest. I would like a word with him in private. You all have other business to tend to anyways. I suggest you do so at once. We will finish our discussion earlier."_

The men all looked highly displeased, but Miron gave them a nod and they slowly exited through a back door. Trunks didn't see the dirty and suspicious looks he was getting, looking around the room. It was gratefully cool in here, but what caught his attention was the large, embedded screen on the back wall near the door that the men were filing out of. There was a flat grid of the entire planet of Rithica laid out on the screen, with data scrolling underneath it. Miron walked up to it and pressed his finger to the screen, making it go black.

He turned and smiled at Trunks. "Please, have a seat, young man," Miron said kindly, motioning to the table. He himself sat down, reaching for a glass pitcher filled with an orange fluid. "A drink?"

"No, thank you," Trunks answered, taking a seat as well on the opposite end of the round table.

"I don't believe I caught your name."

"I don't believe I gave it."

Miron chuckled, his eyes on his glass that he was pouring out. "Very well then, boy. What's in a name anyways? I don't need it to learn a thing or two about you."

"Is that right?" Trunks asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Your scouter and your armor give much away," Miron said, leaning back in his seat and eyeing Trunks carefully. "You are one of Frieza's soldiers."

Trunks scowled. "Not by choice."

Miron smiled. "I wasn't aware there was a choice. Nor was I aware that Vegeta was sending a boy to do a man's job these days."

"I assure you, friend. I am man enough to destroy you and all of your men in the blink of an eye," Trunks said calmly, a hint of arrogance sparkling in his blue eyes.

"You truly are one of Vegeta's men," Miron mused out loud, raising his drink and twirling it around a bit in his wrist. Trunks watched the liquid slosh around, instantly reminded of Frieza. "Only they could know about the history between my people and the Saiyans… and only they could be so overconfident such as yourself," he said, his green eyes guarded as he raised his glass for a drink.

"I am confident. Confident that we can come to a truce and end this conflict. None of your people need to die, Miron," Trunks said genuinely, making direct eye contact with Ares' brother. Miron chuckled and chugged down his whole glass. He finally lowered it to the table and calmly looked back at Trunks.

"Last time I checked, it was your leader, the almighty Prince Vegeta that was poisoned and dying," Miron said snidely. "Serves the coward right, I say. The universe will be a better place once he is de-"

He was instantly slammed back against the screen on the back wall before he could get anything else out, the screen cracking from the force. Trunks leaned in threateningly, his blue eyes blazing with his own fierce hatred. Miron's eyes widened in surprise as Trunks gripped him by the throat.

"That is my FATHER you are talking about, and he is NO coward!" Trunks snarled angrily. Miron's eyes widened even more at the sudden confession. "We are here to purge this planet, and I should be letting him tear you and your little army here apart. I am trying to show you mercy, but believe me, I am this fucking close to taking care of you all myself," Trunks sneered.

"Okay, kid, okay. Let's talk about it, okay?" Miron pleaded, trying to pull Trunks' hand loose. Trunks frowned, before slowly letting his hold go. He backed up as Miron doubled over, one hand on his knee and the other massaging his throat. He looked up at the teenager standing before him, his green eyes dark with fire.

"There is nothing to talk about. You are going to die by my father's hand or by Frieza's if you don't agree to put this hatred aside. My father is not responsible for our ancestors driving yours out of the home planet. That home planet was destroyed long ago and now there is nothing to gain in this madness except bloodshed on your hands. Just let it go."

Miron straightened and clenched his fists. He glared at Trunks, who glared right back. "What do you want from us, boy?"

"Leave my father and his men alone. Pretend they are dead already, imagine you never heard they were alive, I don't care. Just stop this and leave them in peace," Trunks said, his face set in stone as he stared right into Miron's guarded green eyes.

"You ask for a lot, boy," Miron said, scowling and glancing towards the door behind Trunks. "I fail to see where we would benefit from surrendering a war we are fully prepared to win."

"You would benefit by staying alive," Trunks replied. "I will tell my father that I found you and your brother dead already. You and your people can leave before Frieza sells the planet. Vegeta won't look for you again. You can live your lives in peace."

"A tempting offer," Miron slowly admitted. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, looking Trunks over. "The Saiyans would indeed kill many of our men in battle… but how can I be so sure that you will hold up your end of the deal, boy?"

"I can assure you that I will do everything in my power to convince my father of this truth. Will you do the same with your brother?"

"I can," he closed his eyes in momentary thought, before continuing, "and I will."

Trunks blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"A life of violence is not a life at all," Miron said with a frown, his hands now behind his back, his eyes on the black marble floor. "I have been begging my brother for a peaceful end, but he has remained steady in his beliefs that the Saiyans would never show us such mercy. Clearly, he is mistaken. Proven wrong by Vegeta's son, no less." He looked over his shoulder at Trunks and smiled. "I suppose miracles are truly possible after all."

Trunks visibly relaxed and smiled back. He extended his hand out to Miron. "I swear on my life, I will make sure Vegeta and his men never bother you or your people again."

Miron eyed Trunks' hand for a few moments, before nodding. "And I will do the same with my brother. Together, may we bring peace to the generations to come."

He then reached out and shook Trunks' hand.

* * *

Vegeta was livid.

For one, Raditz's piece of shit scouter wouldn't let him establish a basic communication link to the boy's scouter, so he was completely in the dark as to where the kid was and what he was doing. And secondly, he hadn't found the Tuffles on the north half of the planet. He had interrogated, intimidated, and killed the natives, burning some alive to get answers. But no one seemed to know what the hell he was talking about when he mentioned the Tuffles.

Then there was the venom which was starting to notably wreak havoc on his ki. By the time he destroyed the last village he found, it took an extraordinary amount of effort to summon up the energy necessary for lethal ki blasts.

Needless to say, when he finally arrived back to the clearing with their space pods and saw no signs of the kid, he was _not_ in a good mood. He scowled and glared at the kid's space pod that was still where it landed. Clearly, the boy was still on the planet. Vegeta decided to give him a few minutes. At that point, the prince would simply declare him dead and leave him there.

He was just about to take a seat against a tree and rest, his chest burning up with every breath he took, when a lavender haired teenager dropped down from the sky and through the trees. The boy landed in a squat in front of Vegeta, who took a step back, automatically lifting his right hand with his palm faced towards the boy. Vegeta growled impatiently when he saw who it was, lowering his hand.

"Stupid fucking kid, I almost killed you! Did you find the Tuffles?" Vegeta demanded harshly. Trunks straightened, frowning as he observed his father. He had flown back, but had lost his way. Finally, he had decided to just try and hone in on Vegeta's energy signal, but it was weak. He had chalked that up to distance, but now he was standing in front of his father and there was no denying how weak Vegeta was becoming due to the venom. The prince was covered in blood once again from the purge he had just completed, but, at least, none of it seemed to be his own.

"I found where they were," Trunks finally said, choosing his words carefully. "But Ares and his men were all slaughtered when I arrived. There is no one left."

Vegeta howled angrily up at the sky at the news. Now the gods were even taking his revenge away from him. Would _anything_ ever go his way? "DAMN IT!" he screamed, taking off his scouter and dropping it to the ground, before slamming his foot down on it and breaking it to pieces.

Trunks took a step back, a small hint of indecision and regret flaring up inside of him at seeing Vegeta's reaction. The teenager had been so proud to have diffused the situation with the Tuffles without any bloodshed, that he hadn't taken into account what was _supposed_ to happen. If he wouldn't have been sent to this time, then Vegeta would have purged the planet alone. He would have undoubtedly found the Tuffles and killed them all.

 _No, I did the right thing,_ Trunks thought to himself with conviction. Sparing all those men their lives and letting them live in peace was the right thing to do. His mother would be proud of him, and so would Gohan.

"It's fine, Vegeta," Trunks said in an effort to calm his irate father down. "Right now, we should get someone to look at you to get that venom out of you."

Vegeta reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose as he paced furiously from side to side, his tail waving behind him. "Screw the venom, kid. We have to get to Liyana and purge that planet next." He shot Trunks a look, narrowing his eyes. "You _did_ kill everyone you ran into today, correct?"

"Yes," Trunks answered automatically. He left out the fact that he hadn't run into anyone except Miron and his men. The teenager frowned as he watched his father continue pacing. "But the report earlier said that the Liyans going to be a force to be reckoned with. You should be at full strength when we face them."

Vegeta stopped pacing, before slowly giving a conceding nod. The boy had a point. He needed a new scouter anyways. The prince grunted and walked over to his space pod. Trunks sighed and followed suit.

The door closed with a hiss as Vegeta closed his eyes, sighing in relief. He was soaked in sweat and he was more exhausted than he would ever admit. He clutched his chest, wincing in pain as he leaned forward.

Trunks tossed his scouter aside as soon as he was in his own space pod, not bothering to look around. If they were going back to base, then Vegeta would have to go into one of those water tank things. While he was in there, Trunks could leave and head to Earth with the knowledge that his father would be alright.

"Hey, Vegeta, we're going back to base, right?" Trunks waited for an answer, but worry settled into his stomach when he felt Vegeta's ki weaken even more, and got no reply. He tried peering out of the window, but he couldn't see Vegeta's space pod from where he was. He reached down to unlock the door to make sure everything was okay.

Vegeta opened one eye at the boy's question coming in through the sound system. He ignored the teenager, focusing on pushing his pain away. He opened his mouth to tell the boy to shut the hell up when his senses picked up that something was seriously wrong. He frowned, sniffing a bit. What the fuck was that smell? Glancing over, he got his answer in the form of a small black device next to the controls.

And it was blinking red.

"Oh shi-"

Before he could finish the word, the device exploded.

Trunks was launched clear out of his space pod and slammed into a tree back-first before he realized what was happening. He hit the ground hard, instinctively rolling over to get up. He screamed, an excruciating pain flaring up from the motion down his back and his legs. Looking down, both of his legs were soaked in blood and burning raw. One of his legs was completely useless, a huge chunk of metal from the space pod jammed right into the side of one knee. He instantly grabbed it, bit his bottom lip, and yanked it out. He gasped and fell back to the ground on his back, his body starting to tremble in agony. He could hardly move at all. Glancing over, he saw some blue trees burning as his vision faded in and out.

Just as he was about to pass out, he suddenly realized that he couldn't sense Vegeta at all.

The sheer terror that knowledge gave him got him moving immediately. He crawled through the dirt towards the space pods, using only his arms. He only advanced a few feet before his strength gave out. He exhaled through clenched teeth, his face against the dirt, his eyes tightly shut. He had never felt such horrible pain in his entire life.

The teenager finally decided to hell with all the bullshit. Summoning up all of his energy, he clenched handfuls of dirt, his ki exploding around him as he transformed into a Super Saiyan. With newfound strength, he continued crawling, leaving behind a bloody trail as he finally approached the crater where his father's space pod was. Trunks half rolled and half fell into the crater.

Trunks bit back the scream his lungs were burning for, his body trembling uncontrollably from both his agony and terror when he finally saw Vegeta in the wreckage of what was left of his space pod.

"No… can't be happening…" he whispered, rolling his father's motionless body over so he was on his back. Trunks sat up next to him, his physical pain was completely forgotten when he saw the horrible sight of his father. The right half of Vegeta's body was badly burned, from his face down to his legs, his uniform seared right into his flesh. His armor was broken and in pieces. The other half of his body was soaked in blood, and this time, it was definitely his own.

Trunks reached down with one shaking hand, biting back his vicious nausea rising up through him at the smell of burning flesh and blood. He very gently pressed two fingers to Vegeta's neck, trying to get a pulse, but he couldn't keep his hand steady long enough. In a desperate attempt to wake him, he shook Vegeta by what little was left of his armor, but he got no response.

Trunks grabbed and lifted one of Vegeta's hands, gripping it tightly. A bright gold glow immediately surrounded their hands. He lay down on his side, resting his forehead against father's bloodied neck while he gave Vegeta everything he had left – his ki infused with Super Saiyan power.

After a minute of transferring his ki, he felt no change.

Trunks finally broke down crying, his tears mixing with Vegeta's blood. He had failed. This was his fault. And his father had paid the ultimate price. He had gone into the past to save his world, and had done nothing but kill his own father.

"I love you, and I am so sorry, Father," he choked out, his body racked with his sobs and his pain as he lost his transformation. He didn't notice Vegeta's eyes fluttering as the prince struggled to find consciousness.

"Well, isn't this just a touching scene?"

Trunks opened his eyes against Vegeta's skin, recognizing that voice. He weakly raised his head and looked up. There he saw a smirking Miron standing at the edge of the crater, his arms crossed over his chest. And he wasn't alone. Surrounding the entire edge of the crater were his men dressed in white armor, all of them holding the same weapons from earlier, all pointed directly at him.

"You lying piece of shit," Trunks seethed furiously, "You did this to us!"

"Well I don't want to take _all_ of the credit, but… okay, I'll take all the credit," Miron said with a laugh. "Sorry, kid. We planted the explosives by the time you reached us, but if you would've killed us, we would've never detonated them. Good thing for us we got the pure blooded, merciful monkey," he said with a sinister and cruel smirk.

"You, your brother, and your men are all going to fucking die for what you've done to my father!" Trunks screamed, not noticing Vegeta opening one eye halfway, in shock at the boy's words. The prince tried speaking, but he couldn't. A father? Him? Impossible… it was impossible… his vision faded out and he passed out before he could make any sense of it, his pain mercifully going away.

"Sorry kid, but I have no brother. I _am_ Ares, the man you were looking for. What's in a name, right?" he said with a dark laugh.

"Lying fucking snake," Trunks hissed, as Ares made a rounding motion with his fingers.

"Bring them up. Vegeta and the next heir to the Saiyan throne won't die so easily," Ares said with a smirk. Trunks tried another Super Saiyan transformation, but couldn't manage it. He was weak and had given what little strength he had left to his father.

Trunks winced when he felt something sharp hit him right in the neck. Falling next to Vegeta on his back, he reached up weakly and pulled out a needle. The drowsiness hit him instantly, darkness inking into his vision as his body grew impossibly heavy. The last thing he heard before he slipped into the darkness was Ares.

"Should've killed me when you had the chance, kid…"


	9. Face to Face

He should've killed the half-breed piece of shit when he had the chance.

Vegeta glared at the boy sprawled on the ground through his left eye, his right eye burned shut. The prince was sitting up against a stone cold wall, his breathing ragged. The pain he was in was nothing short of excruciating, but it had nothing to do with the severe burns down the right half of his body, or the venom in his blood that made every breath difficult.

His pain had more to do with the metal collar clamped firmly around his neck. Instinctively, he had tried yanking the humiliating thing off as soon as he woke up, only to be rewarded with a high voltage charge exploding down through his body. The shock had sent him into convulsions that almost made him yearn for one of Frieza's beatings instead. Too late, he had realized that there were also metal clamps around both of his wrists, and both of his ankles.

Determined to escape, he had next tried blasting his way out of the prison he was in, only to find that the metal on his body was draining his ki. Infuriated at the thoroughness of his enemies, he had finally made one last ditch attempt at escaping. With all else failing, he had decided to use his bare hands and pound the stone walls around him to dust. _That_ approach had resulted in three shattered knuckles on his already damaged right hand, and another round of high voltage that had sent him collapsing helplessly back to the ground.

To add insult to injury, he hadn't even made a dent in the wall. It didn't seem to be stone after all.

Too weak to try again and at a loss for what else to do, he was now sitting and festering in the hatred manifesting for the boy in front of him.

The proud prince refused to believe he could have possibly failed, but there was no other explanation. The boy looked just like him, and the kid's age left no doubt. After all, there were only three (maybe four) full-blooded Saiyans alive at the time the boy was conceived. How hadn't he figured it out sooner! And how could he have failed? He had always been so careful to prevent having any offspring, but now…

Now he had a son. Now there was an heir to the Saiyan throne. It was mind-boggling, unbelievable, impossible…

…infuriating. His son or not, Vegeta was going to make the boy pay dearly for putting his life at risk like this. The kid was a soft-hearted, merciful fucking idiot who had almost killed them both. The boy would pay not only for that, but also for coming into his life at all. If the kid thought for one second that just because Vegeta fucked some whore once upon a time and he was the end result, that he was going to welcome the boy with open arms, then the little shit had another thing coming…

Trunks groaned, feeling like he was swimming in an ocean of black, thick water as he slowly came to. He lifted one hand weakly, bringing it to his chest as he searched for the comfort of his pendant. He frowned when he didn't feel it. Forcing his eyes to open, he squinted up at the ceiling, disoriented and wondering where he was. Slowly, he rolled over to his side, not realizing his father was staring a hole through him the whole time. Trunks forced himself up, wincing at the intense pain that welcomed him. The teenager finally brushed his sweaty lavender hair out of his face and looked down at himself through bleary eyes. As soon as he did, he felt his heart drop.

His armor. His pendant. The antidote.

It was all gone.

A strangled sound of shock and despair escaped his throat at the sight of his bare skin. They had stripped him and left him only in his ripped and bloodied black trousers with his white boots. He raised both hands up, staring at the thick metal bands around his wrists. Frantically, he tried grabbing one to yank it off.

Trunks fell back to the ground, his eyes shut tightly as the metal bands ran a voltage through his body that he was certain would kill him. He was helpless to stop the spasms that overtook his body. The teenager opened his mouth to scream, but he couldn't.

For the first time in his life, he wished he could just die. Anything to escape this torture. Anything to escape this failure.

Vegeta pulled his right knee up closer to his chest, resting his forearm on it. He leaned his head back against the wall, watching Trunks writhe in agony with cold indifference in his one good eye. He had known this would happen, but the Saiyan prince hadn't cared to warn the boy. He had tried to show the young hybrid how to survive in his cruel world, but the kid didn't want to listen to him.

As far as he was concerned, the boy could learn the hard way.

Finally, the voltage mercifully stopped. Trunks gasped for air, rolling over and putting a hand over his heart as if to assure himself that it was still beating. His teeth were chattering together as he trembled involuntarily. There was a metal band around his neck and his ankles, and each had released a voltage that should've killed him.

A dark and cruel chuckle filled the air.

"You almost resembled a fish out of water, kid," Vegeta remarked, his voice rougher than usual. "I give your flopping a nine out of ten."

Trunks instantly looked over at Vegeta with clear shock on his face. How had he not noticed his father in the room with him?

"Y-y-you're, ali-li-live," Trunks sputtered out. All at once, a barrage of emotions ran through the teenager as he openly gawked at Vegeta. Relief, admiration, elation, and finally, deep concern. He could barely sense his father and they were in the same room, separated by no more than eight feet. That was not a good sign at all…

Vegeta grunted, turning his head to the left and giving Trunks a view of his profile. Trunks winced when he saw the blistering skin on his father's face. Vegeta spit out a mouthful of blood to the ground, his jaw set angrily. "No thanks to you, half-breed," the prince sneered.

Trunks dragged himself over to the wall, unable to bend his right knee from the shard that had been embedded in it. He shifted over and sat up with his back against the wall, across from Vegeta. Like him, his father had also been stripped down to his dark blue pants and his white boots. The elder Saiyan looked like a complete wreck, his body a disfigured canvas of burns and blood.

But if Vegeta was in any pain, he wasn't showing it.

And neither would he. Taking a deep breath in an effort to still his trembling body, Trunks glanced around to take in their surroundings. He didn't need to be a lifelong soldier to realize that they were imprisoned. He didn't know if it was the realization of their situation or the cold in the room, but his skin broke into goosebumps. On his right and Vegeta's left were metallic bars instead of a wall. They ran from the ground to the ceiling, fused right into the stone.

Vegeta saw what Trunks was looking at and snorted. "Go ahead, try it. Put yourself out of your misery," he snarled with pure hatred in his voice. As if punctuating his threat, a visible blue current ran up several bars with a deadly hum.

Trunks racked his brain for something, before blurting out, "We could try blasting-"

"Ki-absorbing," Vegeta interrupted, raising one hand to show off the metal clamp on his wrist. "If they weren't, then I would have seen to it that you never woke up at all," he growled. "You stupid imbecile, I _told_ you explicitly to kill anyone you ran into. But you didn't, did you?" he demanded harshly. Trunks frowned and lowered his head in shame. He shook his head silently, a heavy knot in his chest. Vegeta sneered at him, "Being merciful and being soft gets you killed. You're pathetic, boy. A disgrace to our heritage and the royal lineage."

Trunks blinked and slowly raised his head, his mouth running dry. Vegeta knew? How?

"...royal lineage?" he whispered.

Vegeta's upper lip curled back in disgust. "Do not play me for a fool," he hissed through his teeth. "I am aware of our… _relation,_ " he spat out the word bitterly, eyeing Trunks with pure contempt. He grunted and looked to the prison bars as another blue stream of electric current hummed its way up several bars.

"How you were born at all is the greatest mystery of our times, boy. I never wanted any offspring… least of all, a weak-minded, soft-hearted, tail-less half-breed mongrel like _you_."

His harsh words hung in the air, and Trunks felt like they were deafening even though Vegeta hadn't raised his voice. Trunks had experienced quite a bit of pain in his devastating timeline, but nothing quite compared to hearing his father's cold and blatant rejection of him. He looked down again, making sure that the lump in his throat didn't manifest itself as tears in his eyes. He would be damned to let Vegeta think even worse of him, but he had never felt so devastated and so ashamed of himself. Even Gohan's death hadn't been as demoralizing as the situation now before him. Trunks had had nothing to do with his mentor's death; here, though, he had single-handedly failed to protect his time machine, Goku's heart virus antidote, and now, his own birth in this timeline. He had damn near cost his father his life too.

And then, to put the icing on the cake, Vegeta knew who he was and hated him anyways. The man he had grown up idolizing thought he was a disgrace to his royal blood.

Right now, Trunks couldn't help but agree. Why, _why_ hadn't he just killed off the Tuffles when he ran into them? How could he have been so stupid to think that they would change for the better?

"Father, I'm s-"

"Do _not_ call me that," Vegeta snarled, lacing every syllable with a silent, deadly threat.

"I'm sorry," Trunks finished, not lifting his eyes from the ground.

Vegeta didn't bother responding. His chest was harboring an intense pressure that made speaking hard. He had bigger things on his plate than the boy he was locked up with anyways, like how the fuck he was supposed to get out of this mess with the Tuffles. He had sorely underestimated their resourcefulness and now he was trapped. Time was now of the essence. Every moment that ticked by, he could feel himself growing weaker. His strength was bleeding away, and he didn't know how to stop it. His body was wrecked on the outside, and the inside was catching up in a hurry thanks to the venom in his blood.

He cursed the boy for being there. Vegeta wanted to walk over to the bars to see how bad the electricity was. If it wasn't debilitating, he could use what little strength he had left and just yank them right off. As it was, though, he wasn't sure if he could even stand. That doubt kept him sitting there. Though he didn't give a shit about the kid, facts were facts: his son was stronger than him. And his pride refused to risk showing weakness in front of the boy.

Something moved out of the corner of his eye. Looking over, Vegeta scowled at Trunks as the teenager raised one palm up to the bars. What did the idiot boy think, that he was lying about the metal being ki-draining? If it was that easy, then he would've done it already.

 _Stupid fucking kid,_ Vegeta thought angrily as Trunks closed his eyes and focused. _What does he think he's…_

Vegeta's good eye grew wide when he saw a faint yellow glow surround his son's hand. Just how powerful _was_ this boy? He watched in astonishment as Trunks clenched his jaw tightly, but the energy dissipated before he could gather the required amount. Trunks hissed in frustration, lowering his hand and slamming his fist angrily into the ground.

"Damn it, almost!" the teenager growled.

Vegeta snorted. "No discipline and no focus…pathetic."

Trunks turned and looked his father in the eye. Very quickly, he was learning what Vegeta respected. Power and strength. And Trunks had both in abundance. Perhaps he might not ever win his father's love, but he would be damned not to win his father's respect. And there was no time like the present.

"I am not _pathetic_ , Fa—er, Vegeta. In fact…" He took a deep breath, before admitting, "I might well be the most powerful being in the universe."

Vegeta raised an uninterested and disbelieving eyebrow. "Is that right?"

"That's right."

Vegeta opened his mouth to respond, but instead coughed roughly. Trunks' features softened into concern when he saw his father hack up blood. The prince roughly and impatiently wiped the blood away, exhaling in exasperation at his own weakness. Trunks wanted to ask if he was all right, but what was the point? He clearly wasn't, and there was nothing Trunks could do to help him.

And even if there was, he doubted Vegeta would ever let him.

"Even if that were true," Vegeta finally sneered, his voice raw and rough, "Your strength won't save you here." He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his good eye as sweat ran into it. He was sweating profusely, his body relentlessly working to heal itself. It wasn't the first time that he had felt death slowly crawling through him, but it wasn't something he could ever get used to.

His head pounding, he tried to come up with a plan. He had to think. Strategy. He needed a strategy. Furrowing his brows, he reflected on the last time Frieza had thrown him into the dungeons on his ship. How many days had he been locked up? Twenty? Thirty?

"Since we can't blast our way out of here, what are we going to do?" Trunks asked, breaking the silence. Surely, his father could come up with a plan to get out of this.

Vegeta growled in agitation at having his train of thought interrupted. "That is what I am trying to think of, boy."

Unfortunately for the Saiyan prince, Trunks was a teenager and his mother's son. Though mature for his age, the silence in the room felt unbearable to the boy. He pressed on undeterred, frowning thoughtfully, "Maybe we could call for them."

"Call for who, kid? The fucking Ginyu Force?" Vegeta snapped angrily, opening his eye to glare at Trunks. The teenager frowned as Vegeta spit out another mouthful of blood, only making his concern grow worse.

"No, I meant call for the Tuffles. If we could get them in here, we could kill them and get the hell out of here."

Vegeta stared blankly at Trunks, absent-mindedly wondering if his punishment for his evil deeds was being cursed with an idiot for a son. After some time, he sighed. Reaching up, he rubbed both eyes with two fingers, even though it hurt like hell to touch the one that was burnt shut. Right now, being locked in this prison with this boy was making death look like an appealing alternative.

" _First_ of all, kid, all they have to do is run the electricity through these metal clamps, and we would both be incapacitated. And _second_ of all, even if we escape…" his voice trailed off. He turned to face the bars, the muscle near his jaw rhythmically beginning to twitch.

Though he wouldn't voice such concerns, Vegeta wasn't quite sure that he'd be able to talk his way out of Frieza killing him for getting captured by weaklings like the Tuffles. After all, Vegeta had stood by and watched as the lizard bastard mercilessly killed off his "favorite" soldiers over the years for the most trivial of failures. Failure was the one thing that was completely unacceptable in the tyrant's eyes.

At best, Vegeta would lose his hard-earned rank in Frieza's army and be sent to get "toughened up" – thrown into the dungeon for weeks on end, torture and starvation being the only company he would keep.

At worst, the bastard would finally give him the beating that would end his miserable existence he called a life.

But that was only if the Tuffles and their venom didn't kill him first.

Darkness started to creep its way into his vision right as the first shreds of hopelessness crept into his soul. He stubbornly blinked both away as Trunks quietly spoke up.

"It's Frieza, isn't it?" Trunks asked, carefully observing his father. Vegeta didn't respond, his face expressionless as he glared at the bars of his new prison. Trunks frowned, "I can destroy him, I know I can. I'm much stronger than him."

Vegeta rolled his eye. "Fool. You have strength, but it means little without any tactical fighting experience to go with it. Also, you have no killer instinct. You are no match for Frieza right now, boy," he said, trying to keep his voice indifferent. It sounded exhausted instead.

"You don't know how strong I am," Trunks boasted arrogantly. "I assure you, Frieza is the one who would be outmatched."

Vegeta scowled. Why the hell was he even bothering? The boy was an arrogant, stubborn jackass determined to learn everything the hard way. He gave an indifferent shrug.

"Let him kill you then. See if I care. It'll save me the trouble of doing it myself."

A heavy silence settled between them after that, much to Vegeta's relief. The only sound was the occasional hum of the electric current as it shot up the prison bars. Trunks stared down at the ground, his lavender hair in his face as he wondered where things had gone so wrong. Every now and then, he'd glance up at his father. Vegeta was staring at the prison bars with a determined strength that made his physical weakness seem almost irrelevant.

Trunks looked back down, examining his injured wrist that Vegeta had broken. It was discolored, but there was still no pain. He gently touched it, being careful not to touch the metal clamp. He scowled. "Do you have _any_ ideas on how we can get out of here?"

Vegeta exhaled through his nose, letting his eye drift closed. His pain was giving him a migraine, not letting him think straight. The boy's incessant talking wasn't helping. Right now, all Vegeta wanted was to just sleep. Of course, that was completely out of the question. He shook his head, forcing his good eye to squint open. Focus was the key. Someone would come by eventually, he knew it. It was his experience that captors got a perverse joy of seeing their captives powerless. He just had to wait for them to come.

And when they did, he was going to be ready.

"I mean, maybe if we brainstorm together-"

"Hn. _Brainstorm,_ " Vegeta scoffed. "This isn't your pampered home we're in, boy. Leave the thinking to me."

Trunks growled indignantly at the insinuation his father was making. "My life wasn't pampered. It was hard, there were monsters who destroyed everything and were constantly hunting me down-"

"Aw, poor little boy, having to face life's hardships," Vegeta sneered in disgust.

Trunks exhaled through his nose in frustration. Why was his father so difficult? And how in the hell had his mother, of all people, gotten through those thick walls that guarded the man he really was?

"I'm just saying that I didn't exactly have it easy either, that's all."

"Spare me your sob story, kid. I don't want to hear it."

"Aren't you even a _little_ curious about me?"

Vegeta was about to shoot the boy down, before it dawned on him that he was indeed curious about something. He turned to look at the teenager, and studied him more thoroughly. The boy had such odd coloring that must have come from his mother. For the life of him, though, he could not remember having ever bedded a woman with the coloring he saw on the boy. Especially those piercing blue eyes… there was no way that color came from his side.

Father and son both stared at each other for a few silent and tense minutes, their hard gazes mirror reflections of each other.

Vegeta grunted and looked away first, going back to staring at the bars as another hum of electricity ran up them.

"The chain you were wearing," he said, his tone guarded. "I have never shown the family crest to any female. How did you acquire it, boy?"

Trunks' mouth ran dry as he contemplated how to respond. Of course it was just his luck that Bulma had been the first to truly dig into the depths of his father's complex personality. Did it really matter anymore if Vegeta knew the truth? He already knew that he was his son, and Trunks knew there was little hope that he would let his guard down with Bulma in this timeline.

"My mother gave it to me," Trunks said, choosing his words very carefully. "But she had it made for you… she loved you."

Vegeta laughed out loud, before it broke into coughing. He spit a mouthful of blood to the ground and then snorted. " _Love…_ give me a fucking break."

"What? She did," Trunks argued with a scowl, before mumbling under his breath, "Probably the only one too."

"Hn. Your mother was a stupid woman then."

Trunks' scowl grew. He was about to respond when something else suddenly got his attention. "Do you feel that?" he asked, sitting up straight against the wall. His blue eyes narrowed as he looked out through the bars, his senses picking up a substantial power level approaching. "Someone is coming."

"There is no way you can detect such a thing without a scouter, boy," Vegeta scoffed, eyeing the teenager warily. If the kid was losing it, that meant he was going to be pressed into action sooner than was necessary.

He was gauging whether he had rested enough to really engage and dispose of Trunks once and for all when the teenager whispered, "There it is. Can you hear it now?" he asked, looking back at his father with anticipation.

"I don't…" Vegeta words trailed off. Even though there was blood coming out of his right ear from the explosion, his hearing was still more sensitive than most. He heard the footsteps, and caught the scent a moment later. His mind automatically assessed.

_Metal. Weapons. Multiple people. At least five from the rhythm of the steps. Likely six._

Trunks blinked in surprise when Vegeta swiftly got up to his feet, exhibiting a strength that the teenager had assumed was long gone. In fact, the only sign of Vegeta's physical distress were his burnt, twitching fingers on his right hand as he fearlessly stepped up to the bars.

Of course, what Trunks didn't know (and would never know) was that his mere presence was accounting for a lot of that strength. Though Vegeta made it look completely effortless, the truth was that it was phenomenal willpower alone that was keeping him on his feet. The prince scowled as he watched the blue current rise up through the bars, his mind racing.

He turned his head and frowned. Perhaps the boy could be useful after all…

Trunks grit his teeth together and tried getting up to his feet, not wanting to appear weak in front of his father. He was struggling to move his wrecked knee when Vegeta's voice suddenly rang through his mind.

_Don't get up. I want you to attempt a ki attack again when I tell you. Conserve your strength for now, and don't you dare fail again, boy._

Trunks sat back down on the ground with a thud as if Vegeta had struck him down, astonished shock on his face. Before he could grasp the fact that his father wanted them to work together to escape, he heard a heavy door open followed by footsteps. Vegeta clenched his fists at his sides and wrapped his tail firmly around his waist just as Ares came into view, dressed head to toe in a slick metallic armor that looked five times more powerful than the armor the men following him were wearing. At the sight of the Tuffle leader, Trunks grinded his teeth together so hard he thought he would crush them.

Narrowing his eyes, he realized the power he was sensing was emanating straight from Ares. With both Vegeta and himself weakened, Trunks realized this might not be as easy as he thought…

"Well, would you look at this? The cowards finally show themselves," Vegeta sneered, trying his best to reign in his rage. It was threatening to spill over at any moment, but he had to be patient. He had to wait for the right moment.

"Ah, so _you're_ Vegeta. The last Prince of the Saiyans," Ares said with a smirk, walking up to Vegeta until he was an inch away from the bars. "We meet at last."

"Pleasure's mine," Vegeta snarled, the vein on his temple throbbing dangerously as Ares eyed him up and down.

"Hnn. Gotta say, I thought you'd be taller," Ares said, his smirk growing as he raised a curious eyebrow.

Vegeta almost lost it right there. Any inkling of an honorable death for his adversaries was now gone. _No one_ ridiculed his height and lived to tell about it. The Saiyan took a deep breath, glaring into the green eyes of his enemy. "I assure you, weakling. My height is more than enough for what I plan to do to you."

"Weakling?" Ares laughed. "Sorry, Saiyan. But it seems to me that you're the only weakling here."

"Come in here and say that to my face without these toys and gadgets in the way, you coward," Vegeta seethed, his voice raw with threatened bloodshed in every syllable. Trunks released a shaky breath when he felt his father's ki for the first time since he woke up imprisoned. It was extremely weak, but he could still sense it and for that, he was relieved.

"What's the matter? Don't like it when people don't play fair?" Ares asked, his eyes darkening with hatred. "How many have you mercilessly slaughtered in your lifetime, Saiyan? How many never stood a chance against you and your men?"

"Ah, so you have come to rid the universe of the wicked, have you?" Vegeta asked in a dangerously calm voice, his tail now methodically waving behind him. "Well then, you have come to the right place."

"It seems I have," Ares snickered. "Going around causing destruction and taking lives at your whim, like you're a god, when in reality you're just an evil monster."

A sinister and slightly mad smirk crept over Vegeta's face, as though he had just been paid a compliment of the highest order. "You're exactly right my friend. When this is all said and done, I will feed your beheaded carcass to the nearest mongrel I find."

"Saiyan, I will have you and your entire race ended before you die from the poison in your blood. Then you will have the privilege of being the last Saiyan in the universe before you die alone," Ares threatened in a cold tone. His green eyes flicked over to Trunks, who sneered at him. "Perhaps I'll start with your son. What do you think about that?"

"While I would love to see you try, you will not die by the boy's hands. I will be the one who stands in your blood when this is done, Ares."

"No one will be spilling blood except me, Saiyan," Ares snarled angrily, leaning in closer to the bars. "You, your son, and your men will pay for what you've done and for what your ancestors have done."

"Your ancestors were weak and thus deserved every last fucking thing they got," Vegeta snarled back. He grit his teeth together, fighting a grimace as his chest screamed in pain. One of the men behind Ares growled at Vegeta's words, raising his sleek rifle up and pointing it at the Saiyan. The other four men immediately did the same.

 _Get ready, boy,_ Vegeta communicated silently to a slightly alarmed Trunks. The teenager had felt Vegeta's ki drop practically to nil, but still, Vegeta was showing no signs of physical weakness. The prince was wearing his severe external injuries as easily as clothes, and Trunks couldn't help but feel his admiration for the man grow in his chest. Taking a deep breath, he began focusing on gathering up the right amount of energy. If he could summon it all up, all at once, he might be able to generate enough to blast their way out before the metal clamps drained all his energy.

"My ancestors were not _weak_!" Ares yelled, his face turning red from his own fury. "If anything, they were generous to the low-level inbred monkey pieces of trash that your ancestors were by allowing them to live on the planet!"

Vegeta laughed a bitter laugh. "Is _that_ what you call it? Generosity? Your people always thought they were superior to the Saiyans. They forced them to live in the outskirts of civilization like they were savages. Like I said…they got what they deserved."

"The only one who is going to get what he deserves is you," Ares threatened, glaring at Vegeta with a hatred the likes of which Trunks had never seen in his life.

"At least your ancestors fought with honor," Vegeta sneered. "They did not resort to these cheap tricks to gain an advantage."

"And that's why they lost. I assure you, Saiyan, that I won't repeat that mistake. After all, if you can't beat them…" Ares smirked. "Neutralize them."

Vegeta's voice rang out in Trunks' mind.

_NOW!_

Soaked in sweat, Trunks instantly raised his hand to the bars, his entire arm trembling as his hand immediately began to grow. Before Ares could blink, Vegeta shot his right arm through the bars and grasped him by the throat in a steel grip that even Frieza would not have been able to break. With a snarl, Vegeta hauled Ares face-first into the charged electric bars right as Ares' men and Trunks fired.

Fired shots, an explosion, bodies falling.

Finally, after a few seconds, there was silence.

Trunks let out an insanely relieved bout of laughter when the smoke finally cleared. His body was trembling; it had taken everything he had to get through the ki-draining metal on him, but it had worked. He had blasted off part of the bars of their makeshift prison. Meanwhile, Ares was convulsing on the ground, his mouth open in a silent scream. His men were still holding up their now smoking rifles, but the look in their eyes through their helmets was one of fear. They were mumbling to each other in their native tongue which Trunks couldn't understand without his scouter, but that didn't matter anymore.

 _We did it!_ Trunks thought to himself, a smirk spreading over his face that made him practically the mirror image of his father. _We're going to escape, we're going to—_

Vegeta suddenly dropped to his knees, bringing Trunks crashing back to reality. The prince reached up with one shaking hand to his bare chest where a needle was firmly embedded. He had used his left hand and forearm to absorb the bullets fired by Ares' men, but hadn't seen the needle Ares was hiding. The bastard had anticipated Vegeta's move, and had sank the needle into him at the same time that his face smashed into the bars.

Vegeta plucked the needle out of his chest. What little strength he had left disappeared as soon as he did, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Father!" Trunks cried out in alarm. With a dogged determination that could only be inherited when your parents were the Prince of Saiyans and Bulma Briefs, he forced himself to move, his leg be damned. He dragged himself over to Vegeta who was lying on his side. He put a hand on his father's back, trying to see what was wrong. "What happened, where are you hurt?" Trunks asked frantically.

_What the fuck is the boy doing? Why isn't he using the opportunity to escape?_

"Get out, idiot," Vegeta growled weakly, feeling himself fading fast.

"Not without you!" Trunks hissed. He had failed too much, and ensuring his father's survival was all he had left.

"I don't think so," a furious voice snarled. Trunks looked up just in time to see the Tuffles all aiming their rifles at him. His eyes settled on their irate leader, being held up by one of his men, who gave him a cruel smirk. "You're not going anywhere."

He pressed a button on a handheld device, triggering another round of voltage that sent the teenager collapsing to the ground. Trunks briefly wondered what the hell he had done to deserve this when the Tuffles swarmed both of them. Only focused on the excruciating pain he was in and not able to make a sound, the teenager was only vaguely aware of hands on him as his vision slowly faded to black.

"So you guys want to play like that, huh? Well, so be it…"

* * *

Some time later, Vegeta winced, before slowly cracking his good eye open. His body ached, and he knew he had used up all his energy reserves in their botched escape attempt. In particular, his wrists hurt like hell. Slowly raising his head, he realized that he was hanging by them, and it left him a good two feet off the ground. The metal clamps around his wrists had been locked together and then hung from the ceiling. He had been in this exact position countless times before, but that had always been by Frieza's orders when he wanted him fire whipped. The thrashings were random and given without provocation. The intention had been to "toughen him up."

Seeing as how he could barely move an inch and he was feeling weaker by the second, he sorely hoped Frieza's "preparation" had paid off.

Trunks looked up when he sensed Vegeta moving. Unlike his father, he had been left on the ground against the wall, his wrists locked together over his head. The clamps had then been attached to the wall, and he couldn't help but wonder what the hell they were using. Even though he was severely weak, he was still stronger than almost everyone in the universe - but it just was not enough.

"I think they'll be back soon," Trunks mumbled. He was met with a stony silence as the prince glared at the blasted exit that was mocking him. They had been _so_ fucking close…

Trunks sighed when seeing that his father was ignoring him again, and looked down. "I'm sorry," he finally said quietly. A muscle flexed near Vegeta's jaw in annoyance. "For putting us in this mess," Trunks clarified.

There was an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before Vegeta finally broke it.

"It's not your fault, boy," he mumbled, his voice hoarse. "You're not the one who fathered a weakling."

Trunks was so frustrated that he blurted out his next words without thinking.

"Why do you hate me so much? It's not like I chose to have you for my…" he caught himself and stopped, as if realizing what he was saying. The shame and regret immediately flooded his chest, and he wished more than anything that his father would look at him. "That's not what I meant-"

"Of course it's what you meant," Vegeta grunted, letting his good eye drift closed. He was completely exhausted, and the boy wasn't helping things. "Look, kid. This is who I am. I am no father, and just because you _exist_ does not change that. Apologies if I have failed to live up to some ridiculous fantasy of an ideal father that you might have had."

"I know this is who you are, but you don't have to be like this, Father," Trunks insisted. "You could be so much better."

"Yes, a better warrior."

"A better man."

Vegeta snorted. "Your philosophical moral bullshit code almost got us both killed, boy, so spare me."

Trunks opened his mouth to respond, but he had nothing to say to that.

Both of them smelled the burning at the same time a moment later. Vegeta and Trunks both looked over to see that the Tuffles had returned. Trunks unconsciously winced at the sight of Ares. The Tuffle was now sporting a thick, visible burn going down the side of his face. Vegeta smirked when he saw it.

"I like your new look. It suits you well," Vegeta said with a dark chuckle, before spitting out a mouthful of blood.

"Two can play that game, Saiyan," Ares snarled, walking right in through the large gap Trunks had created. He was followed by three Tuffle soldiers, and one carried something that instantly got Trunks' attention: a long steel rod with the symbol of the Tuffles at the end of it. Ares stopped in front of Vegeta and motioned for it. Seeing it glowing orange-red from heat, Vegeta scowled and instinctively leaned his head back as Ares waved the blistering hot metal an inch from his face. "You scar me, I scar you. Fair is fair, I say."

"If you put that thing on me, I _swear,_ I will track down everyone you have ever known and burn them alive," Vegeta threatened, his one good eye showing that he was more than capable (and more than willing) to follow through.

"By the time the tranquilizer passes through your systems, you'll both be dead. You'll never get the chance."

Trunks' eyes shifted from the hot metal in Vegeta's face to the soldier coming up to him. He growled in warning when the soldier put his rifle right up against his temple. Vegeta clenched his jaw shut tightly at the sight.

"I have you and your son completely neutralized. That's what happens when you send a boy to do a man's job, Saiyan. Now, I _am_ curious about one thing…is this boy your only son?"

 _Damn the fucking kid!_ Not even _one_ day had passed with him knowing he had a son, and his enemies were already trying to use the boy against him. This was exactly one of the reasons why he had never wanted children in the first place…

Vegeta grunted and looked back into Ares' triumphant green eyes. "You say you've heard about me, and yet you think I care about that half-breed mongrel sitting over there? If the boy dies, he dies. I don't care."

Trunks grit his teeth as the rifle was pressed harder into his skull. He tried as hard as he could to break free, but the restraints currently on his wrists simply would not budge. He felt sluggish and lethargic, his arms feeling unnaturally heavy as Ares just laughed at them both.

"A son who defends a father who hates him. Is this what the royal family of the Saiyan race has dwindled down to?" Ares asked casually with a smirk.

"I am going to rip you apart from limb to limb," Vegeta swore with a furious hiss.

"We have thousands on our side if that's how you want to play, Vegeta. There are many in the universe who would love to see you die a slow and painful death. We are ready to a win a war, if need be."

"Fool, your cowardly toys and games won't save you forever-"

"Toys and games?" Ares interrupted with a laugh, gesturing to the room they were in. "We have subdued one of the fiercest warriors in the universe. My men have come up with a chemical solution that specifically reacts with Saiyan blood and drains what's most precious to them: their ki. Once the ki is drained then raw energy is consumed, leaving you weak and defenseless. The metal clamps release the solution into your skin without you even noticing. And, as if _that_ wasn't enough…" He knocked on his chest plate. "We have designed a metal that will break a Saiyan before a Saiyan breaks it. Impenetrable. Makes your armor look like child's play if I do say so myself."

"Impenetrable, eh? Well, we'll see about that."

"Impenetrable indeed, Saiyan. Our skills with technology have evolved since the older days. We are well-prepared for the likes of warriors of your caliber, Vegeta. Quite brilliant if you ask me."

"Hn. Not _that_ brilliant," Trunks scoffed. Ares and Vegeta broke their fierce staredown to look over at the teenager in surprise, neither having expected him to interrupt. "I was raised with a real genius, and this is amateur compared to what she could do," Trunks boasted with a smug smirk.

"Amateur!" Ares gasped in shock, his eyes wide in disbelief over the gall this boy had. Despite the dire circumstances, Vegeta was mildly impressed. He had expected the boy to break due to his age and how soft he was, but the kid was proving to be a resilient bastard.

"Yeah, you heard me. I broke through your _brilliant_ restraints once, and I'll do it again," Trunks swore confidently.

The Tuffle standing next to Trunks hissed angrily, pressing his rifle even harder against the teenager's temple. Trunks scowled, trying to lean his head away as Ares raised up one hand to calm him down.

"Enough. The boy is arrogant like his father, and he will get his. You and you," he said, pointing to another one of his men. Trunks straightened, grateful for not having that pressure on his head anymore. He sneered at the soldier who had put the rifle against his temple "Both of you come with me. I want to strengthen our… _amateur_ …restraints," Ares said snidely, shooting Trunks a fierce glare.

Trunks stared back, no fear in his hard gaze. Vegeta couldn't help but crack a small smirk.

Ares turned to the third soldier in his group and handed him back the blistering rod. "You, boy. Hold onto this for me, and make sure Vegeta doesn't get out of line. Guard the key with your life. We'll be back. Let's go."

Trunks watched them walk out of the room with quick strides, Ares in the lead. The Tuffle leader was growling in a foreign language Trunks had no hope of understanding without his scouter. He did recognize that tone though, and could tell Ares was swearing up a storm by how harsh his tone was.

"Guess I pissed him off, huh?" Trunks asked with a chuckle.

Vegeta snorted and rubbed his face on his arm, using the motion to keep himself alert. "He's angry someone failed to get a proper scouting report on you," he finally said in his gruff tone.

Trunks blinked in surprise. "You mean you can understand their language?"

"Of course I can, boy," Vegeta scoffed, his tone making it sound like that should have been obvious. He snorted again and spat out a mouthful of blood, coldly eyeing the soldier in front of him. The soldier took a wary step back from Vegeta, dropping the rod Ares had given him and raising his rifle. His hands were a little unsteady as he pointed the rifle at Vegeta. The prince raised an eyebrow curiously.

"It seems our guest understands our language as well…"

The soldier's hands trembled a little, making a maddening smirk spread over Vegeta's features. Though the man was wearing a helmet, Vegeta could see his eyes. He was young, around Trunks' age, and there was emotion in his eyes, one that the Saiyan prince recognized all too well. If there was one emotion he was well-versed in that wasn't hatred, it was fear.

Like a shark in the water, Vegeta smelled blood.

And it belonged to a pure heart.

"So what made you join the Tuffles, boy?" Vegeta asked casually. Trunks frowned as he observed this silently. He recognized the tone his father was using. It was the same tone he had used when they were crossing the black desert in what felt like ages ago. His father was up to something, but what? They were both too weak to do anything.

"Quiet, Saiyan, or I'll shoot," the soldier warned in a thick accent, raising his rifle in emphasis.

"You weren't down here earlier, boy. Matter of fact, I dare say this is the first time you've ever even held a weapon of that caliber," Vegeta mused out loud.

"I _will_ shoot, so shut up!" the boy warned furiously, forcing his hands to steady.

"A Tuffle with a backbone. Life is full of surprises indeed."

Trunks scowled, "What are you do-"

 _Shut the fuck up, boy,_ Vegeta's voice snarled in his mind. Trunks' scowl deepened into his features, the muscle near his jaw twitching anxiously, but he did as he was told.

The young soldier growled angrily. "I am no Tuffle. I am working for Ares because you slaughtered my family, you bastard. And I want to see you pay."

Vegeta smirked. "I did, did I? What planet was it, boy? Let's see if I can remember your family specifically. Then we can find out if they died like cowards."

With an outraged cry, the young soldier picked up the blistering hot iron rod from the ground and charged Vegeta.

A second later, Vegeta had him where he wanted him. Trunks' jaw dropped at the sight in front of him. Had he blinked, he would've surely missed it. He had just been about to scream at the boy not to put that iron rod on his father if he knew what was good for him, but now it was over.

Using raw strength that could only be summoned in cases of life and death, Vegeta had hoisted his body weight up using only his arms, raising his legs up. One kick and the iron rod went sailing out of the boy's hand. Another kick and the boy's helmet went flying. Before the boy had any idea what he had just gotten himself into, Vegeta had already locked his feet around the boy's neck. The prince smirked at the look of shock in the soldier's eyes while Trunks couldn't help but shake his head in admiration, and a hint of pity. Of all the prisoners he could have chosen to mess with, the boy had picked the wrong one at the wrong time.

"Well that wasn't very nice, kid. Here I am trying to talk to you, and you charge me like that?" Vegeta asked, tilting his head curiously as he applied a crippling pressure on the young soldier's neck. The boy could only make choking gurgled sounds as he clawed at Vegeta's legs to let him go. "I think if you make it up to me, I might alleviate the pressure bearing on you…"

Once upon a time, Trunks would have adamantly opposed this violence. Now, he just watched in silence, grinding his teeth together anxiously.

"I'm s-s-so-rr-rry," the soldier gasped, visibly turning purple. His veins were all more pronounced on his face as he clenched his teeth tightly in agony. Much to Trunks' dismay, his father wasn't looking much better. The vein on his temple pulsing rabidly, Vegeta used visible effort to tighten his grip on the boy's neck.

"Get me down now or die, boy," Vegeta snarled, breathing heavily and running on pure adrenaline and willpower. "Unless you think that fool Ares is worth dying for."

Not needing to be told twice, the boy let go of Vegeta's legs and instantly produced a key from his pants. Vegeta raised an eyebrow curiously before looking up to examine the restraints on his wrists. Indeed, his strength was useless to break the clamps, but there was a slot for a key. The key wouldn't remove the clamps from his wrists, but it would at least separate them again. He snorted in amusement.

"Seems my son was right. The Tuffles are amateur indeed," Vegeta said, looking back down at the key. He reached around with his tail and grabbed it, before smirking triumphantly. "Now don't you move, kid. I need you for leverage. Don't you disappoint me now, you're doing a great job," he encouraged, almost sounding genuine. Trunks knew better now, though, and he just shook his head again. The boy was as good as dead, but hopefully, this would work.

Two seconds later, Vegeta landed on the ground on his feet. The young soldier dropped to his knees in front of him, gasping for air and falling forward on his hands. Vegeta's smirk turned cruel.

"Do me a favor when you see Ares in your new dimension, kid. Tell him he should've taken his own advice and not let a boy do a man's job."

Trunks winced and looked away right before Vegeta grabbed the boy's head and violently wrenched it, killing him instantly. With the seasoning that could only come from having done this thousands of times, Vegeta instantly grabbed the boy's body before it hit the ground. He looked up and squinted through the bars, trying to hear if anyone was close.

Looking back and realizing what Vegeta was doing, Trunks whispered, "No one is down here."

Vegeta instantly glanced over at him, narrowing his eyes. "You can really detect that without a scouter?" he demanded incredulously, quietly lowering the lifeless body to the ground. He lowered to one knee, trying to hide his own pain, but it was nearly impossible now.

"Yeah, I can," Trunks said, looking up at his own restraints. He looked back at his father, who was now on his hands and knees and trembling in front of the boy he had just killed. Through the dim lighting, he could see that Vegeta was soaked in the grimy combination of sweat and blood. Some of the burns on his side by his ribs were notably getting infected, and Trunks felt sick at the sight. "Father, please, let me go so I can help you," Trunks pleaded. "We can get out of here together."

Breathing heavily, Vegeta squinted over at Trunks. A big part of him wanted to say to hell with the kid and leave him there to rot. And maybe he would have done just that, if it hadn't been the Tuffles they were up against. No matter what, at the end of the day, the boy had Saiyan blood in his veins.

Vegeta grabbed the key and slowly crawled over to Trunks. Once he got in front of him, he very painfully forced himself up to his feet, avoiding the boy's grateful eyes.

"Thank you," Trunks told him genuinely.

Vegeta grunted as he worked on freeing his son. His hands kept trembling, making the task difficult.

"I am the Prince of all Saiyans. I would have no honor if I allowed the Tuffles to kill someone with Saiyan blood. Don't think this changes anything between us, boy," Vegeta growled. "You will still pay for putting me in this mess."

Finally, Trunks was able to lower his arms. He looked down and examined his wrists, being careful not to touch the metal clamps again. The teenager frowned when he saw his father's white boots in front of him stained with blood, before looking up at him.

"Now what?"

"Now we go take a relaxing bath. What do you think, boy? Now we get the hell out of here."

"But how? They have an army ready and neither of us can handle that right now…"

Vegeta smirked.

"Watch and learn, kid."


	10. From the Inside Out

One lone, small Tuffle soldier stood guarding the door that led down to where the Saiyan prisoners were being kept. He stood still as stone, holding his rifle in his hands and staring straight ahead as other soldiers and scientists passed in front of him without paying him any attention. The atmosphere was tense, the smell of war in the air. Tales of Vegeta's strength and resourcefulness were legendary, and all precautions were being taken to ensure proper revenge.

The soldier couldn't help but smirk at the thought.

Sensing something, he turned and suspiciously looked at the closed door behind him. He visibly hesitated before looking over to the first soldier he saw coming his way.

 _"Hey man, come here,"_ he said, waving the other Tuffle over.

 _"What is it?"_ the second, taller soldier demanded gruffly as he came over, carrying his own rifle.

 _"Thought I heard something coming from down there,"_ the first soldier said, motioning with his chin to the door. _"What's taking Ares, anyways?"_

 _"Reports have found another space pod not far from here. It's definitely one of Frieza's men,"_ the second soldier informed. _"Don't know yet if it's Saiyan or not, much less the intent."_

 _"Shit,"_ the smaller soldier swore, looking down. _"What are we going to do?"_

_"Ares is trying to use the sensors we have to track whoever this is. He's put Vegeta and his spawn on the backburner for now."_

The first soldier nodded solemnly, looking back at the door. _"Speaking of, I have a bad feeling about those two. I want to check it out, make sure everything's alright, but not by myself. I want some backup."_

The taller Tuffle snorted and rolled his eyes. _"They're both restrained and weakened. You're probably just hearing things. You new here or something? Why are you so afraid?"_

 _"I've heard stories of Vegeta, idiot. I'm not afraid, I'm just not stupid,"_ the first soldier growled, angrily turning away and opening the door himself. _"Just come with me to check things out, will you?"_

The taller of the two exhaled impatiently. _"Fine. Let's make it fast then."_ He then brushed past the smaller soldier, knocking him off-balance a bit before heading down the darkened staircase.

 _"Hn,"_ the smaller soldier grunted, following after the taller soldier with a smirk, closing the door behind them.

 _"I can't believe I'm actually doing this,"_ the taller soldier muttered to himself as he descended the stairs. _"Goddamn new recrui-"_

Two hands suddenly reached out from around the corner at the bottom of the stairwell, grabbing the taller soldier's head and violently breaking his neck, killing him instantly. The smaller soldier flinched back in shock as his comrade's lifeless body fell to the ground in a heap. His murderer slowly came around the corner until he was facing the soldier directly.

They stared at each other in silence for a few tense moments. Finally, the soldier looked over his shoulder up towards the door, and then looked back at the bruised and bloodied lavender haired teenager standing in front of him. With a grunt of approval, the soldier reached up and removed his helmet, freeing his dark hair which instantly stood up like a flame.

"Thought you didn't have it in you to kill, boy," Vegeta said, his raw and gruff voice indifferent as he tossed his helmet aside. Trunks caught the slightest hint of surprise in his dark eyes, the burned one now opened but completely bloodshot.

Trunks looked down at the body lying between them, his blue eyes darkening.

The five or so minutes that he had waited for his father to return had been the longest of his life. In that short amount of time, the anxiety of not knowing whether Vegeta would be sniffed out and killed was worse than anything Trunks had ever experienced in his time. Sitting alone in their prison, surrounded by blood and a stripped down dead soldier in front of him…the pain he had seen and was currently in, the violence painting this time… the dead, empty gaze of the young soldier Vegeta had killed that seemed to be looking right at him…

 _Just like_ _Gohan's…_

Something inside of Trunks was finally starting to break.

"I'm a survivor first and foremost," Trunks finally replied, his tone rougher than usual as he raised his eyes to meet his father's. He cracked a smirk that made Vegeta feel like he was looking in a mirror. "Kill or be killed, right?"

Vegeta stared at the teenager. He had fully planned on taking care of whoever the unfortunate bastard was that came down with him, and was honestly shocked that the kid had stepped up to the plate instead. Taking a good, thorough look into the boy's eyes, Vegeta could see clear as day that he was finally beginning to break. It was exactly what Vegeta had hoped for, precisely what he had wanted to see ever since he had first stumbled upon the boy.

And yet, he inexplicably felt no excitement and no pride over it. There was no sense of victory, no satisfaction. Suddenly needing to look away from the boy's surprisingly cold gaze, Vegeta scowled and bent over, grabbing one of dead soldier's feet.

"Hn… the Tuffles are preoccupied at the moment, so we have a little time," the Saiyan Prince growled, dragging the body around the corner and over to their prison cell while Trunks slowly limped after him.

"Preoccupied?" Trunks asked curiously.

"Seems we have company," Vegeta said, wincing as he finally let go of the body. "Get to work, boy," he ordered, before turning back around and leaving Trunks alone again, not even bothering to look at his son as he left.

Gingerly, the teenager lowered himself to the ground in front of this new dead body. Not wasting any time, he removed his helmet. He consciously avoided that cold death stare as he set the helmet aside, before beginning to take the soldier's white suit off.

Vegeta returned a few moments later, walking through the entrance Trunks had blasted earlier, once again wearing his helmet. It made hiding his pain that much easier. He dropped a rifle next to Trunks, holding his own expertly with his other hand. Ignoring the teenager, Vegeta walked across the cell and leaned up against the wall. He briefly contemplated sitting down and resting, but he knew he had to remain standing from now on. If he sat down now, he wasn't sure he could get back up. Squinting through the bars, he listened for any sign of someone coming down.

"Hurry up, kid," Vegeta growled, shooting Trunks an impatient glance.

"What did you mean when you said we have company?" Trunks asked as Vegeta looked down at the rifle in his hands.

"The Tuffles found a space pod that's not ours," Vegeta answered, lifting the rifle up and aiming it at the dead body in front of Trunks. He pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. Growling, he looked back down at it in frustration.

"You think Nappa or Raditz came back for us?" Trunks asked, yanking a boot off the soldier.

"That would be the best case scenario," Vegeta reluctantly admitted, deep down hoping it was one of them who had come and not someone from the Ginyu Force. He had lost all sense of time, and didn't know how long he and the boy had been trapped by the Tuffles. After a certain amount of time, if you didn't report to base, you were classified as a deserter… Vegeta's hands suddenly trembled involuntarily. He scowled and gripped his rifle tighter, willing it to stop. "I'm sure we'll find out soon enough," he added, looking through the bars again.

"Yeah, but if it's not Nappa or Raditz, then who-"

"Fucking hell, boy!" Vegeta hissed furiously. "Just shut your mouth and get on with it!"

Trunks instantly moved faster, as fast as he could with his injuries. Vegeta looked back out through the bars, squeezing his eyes shut as a wave of nausea and dizziness ran through him. If he wouldn't have been leaning against the stone wall, he wasn't sure he would've remained standing. He could hear his heartbeat ringing in his ears, and could feel cold sweat running down his back.

"Hey, you okay?" Trunks asked, trying not to sound alarmed, but it looked like Vegeta was moments away from collapsing.

"Hn?" Vegeta instantly forced his eyes back open. He blinked a few times and shook his head. He had to last. He looked back at Trunks and very quickly regained his composure. "I can take care of myself, half-breed," he sneered angrily.

Trunks frowned at him. "It's Trunks."

"What are you talking about now, blasted boy?"

"Trunks. My name is Trunks," the teenager said, pulling his permanently borrowed helmet over his head to complete his Tuffle outfit.

Vegeta stared at him in blank disbelief, before shaking his head. "I have a half-breed son named _Trunks_ ," he spat in disgust, looking off through the bars again. "My eternal humiliations truly have no bounds."

"Just thought you should know," Trunks mumbled, looking down at his white metallic looking suit and making sure there were no blood stains on it.

 _In case we don't make it out of here alive,_ Trunks added silently. He bent down gingerly, picking up the rifle Vegeta had dropped next to him. He curiously examined it. It was large but surprisingly light.

"They don't work," Vegeta said, pushing himself off the wall and walking over to his son.

"But they have to work. Otherwise, why carry them at all?" Trunks asked.

Lifting it up, he aimed it at the opposite wall that Vegeta had just been leaning against just moments ago. Vegeta growled in annoyance. Why was this boy so goddamn _stubborn?_

"We have more important things to…" Vegeta's voice trailed off when Trunks pulled the trigger. Something that looked like a red laser shot out of the rifle and sliced through the supposedly impenetrable stone wall as if it was butter.

Silent, fast, deadly. Vegeta and Trunks both stared at the hole it left in its wake.

"Alright, that's it. We're switching, kid," Vegeta said, roughly shoving his rifle into Trunks' chest and taking the teenager's instead.

"What's wrong with yours?" Trunks asked, looking down at the new rifle he held in his hands with a frown.

"Doesn't work," Vegeta growled, feeling the cold sweat covering his torso now. His hands involuntarily started to tremble again, making him hiss in frustration as he exited the cell. His head felt like it was going to explode any moment now.

He went up two stairs when he realized that Trunks wasn't following him. Closing his eyes, Vegeta cracked his neck to keep himself from screaming in frustration. Turning back around, one eye closed from the painful migraine he was fighting off, Vegeta stalked back over to Trunks, ignoring how taxing the simple action felt on his weakened body.

"What the fuck are you doing, kid?" the prince hissed as soon as the teenager came into view. "We have to move, _now_."

"I know, I know, I'm almost done," Trunks said with a frown as Vegeta walked closer. He tilted his head in curiosity when he saw that Trunks had actually taken the rifle apart. "I've seen this design before. Just a few more seconds."

Vegeta scowled and looked from the rifle up to Trunks. "You know weapons?"

"Yeah, my mom developed a ton of them to help us survive," Trunks admitted, his hands moving expertly as Vegeta looked on. "I had to learn how to use them and to teach others to use them. Been doing this since I was old enough to talk. Course when I got older, I stopped using them, but she kept developing weapons to help the others try to defend themselves… didn't help that much though," he admitted bitterly.

"…Your mother developed weapons?" Vegeta asked, his eyes wide with genuine shock. His mind started racing as he wondered who the hell this boy's mother was. He wouldn't characterize _any_ of the women he had bedded as being that, well, intelligent.

"Yeah, she's a genius. I've seen something like this before when I was a kid," Trunks said, snapping the rifle shut. Lifting it up to his shoulder, he aimed it at the wall and fired. Sure enough, this time it actually worked. Vegeta stared at the hole the laser left in the wall as Trunks snickered. "Like I said. This stuff is amateur," the teenager said with an arrogant smirk.

Vegeta looked back at his son for a few seconds, his intense gaze unreadable. Finally, he snorted in amusement. "Well now, it seems to me that your mother was good for more than one thing," he said, a smirk creeping up on his face. Trunks instantly turned crimson red behind the glass shield of his helmet at the statement, making Vegeta laugh loudly in response.

"Come on, kid, let's get out of here."

The prince turned and headed towards the stairs, still snickering lightly to himself at the kid's response as Trunks obediently followed him. Vegeta looked over his shoulder briefly, taking a glance at the teenager as Trunks forced himself up the stairs behind him. His laughter gone, Vegeta silently took in the way Trunks forced himself on despite his clear pain without a word or sound of complaint. He scowled and looked ahead, continuing up the stairs.

It seemed the boy was more resilient than he had given him credit for.

But then again... he _was_ his son.

Finally, Vegeta walked out through the door, both of his eyes easily open and alert as he appeared to all the world like a bored soldier with no physical ailments to speak of. It didn't hurt that the tinted glass on his helmet helped disguise just how badly bloodshot one of his eyes was. Unless someone got right in his face to see his burns, he was in the clear.

Trunks emerged a second later after his father. The teenager blinked a few times, squinting at the sudden bright light that greeted him as he closed the door behind him. It was a far cry from the dark dungeon where they had been kept.

 _Let's move, kid,_ Vegeta communicated silently to Trunks, turning and walking off. Trunks walked after him, his face reddening with excruciating pain as he made his best effort to walk normally. Despite his valor, he had a subtle limp, noticeable to anyone who paid close attention. Well aware of Trunks' injuries, Vegeta walked as fast as he could while still allowing Trunks to keep pace with him. All the while, Trunks couldn't believe how easy Vegeta made this look.

Trying to distract himself from his physical discomfort, Trunks took a look around at the enormous military style base they were in. There must have been _hundreds_ of soldiers walking about, all of them wearing the same white metallic suits that he and Vegeta were now wearing. It simply boggled Trunks' mind that so many had joined Ares' side just to defeat three Saiyans. Did it truly warrant an entire army to take out Vegeta, Nappa, and Raditz?

After a few seconds of thought, Trunks concluded that yes, it probably did.

Vegeta suddenly stopped walking, making Trunks damn near collide into him from behind. "Look there, boy," the prince ordered, motioning with his head for Trunks to look to the left.

"What are we looking at?" Trunks whispered, trying to spot something out of the ordinary, but no one was paying them any attention at the moment.

"You," came the cold and simple answer.

"Wha-"

Before Trunks realized what was happening, Vegeta kicked him as hard as he could, viciously slamming the heel of his boot right into Trunks' already damaged knee and shattering the bones in the joint on impact. Completely caught off guard, Trunks collapsed in a heap, unable to suppress the howl of agony and betrayal that exploded out of him.

With the skill of a well-practiced liar, Vegeta fell to his knees next to Trunks, his eyes wide with shock as if he had no clue what was wrong with the teenager. Putting a supportive hand on Trunks' shoulder, he frantically turned to the audience they now had.

 _"We need a medic!"_ Vegeta yelled at them. His words sounded like complete nonsense to Trunks who didn't understand the Tuffle language and had long since lost his scouter for translation. Trunks exhaled through his clenched teeth, his eyes squeezed tightly as he clutched his knee and rolled onto his side. Vegeta lightly patted the side of his son's helmet as a medical team ran up to them.

 _"What happened?"_ someone asked as Vegeta stood up, holding his rifle tightly.

 _"The kid's leg just blew out from under him,"_ Vegeta explained, concern in his voice as he looked on while they tried tending to Trunks, who was very reluctantly allowing it. The prince scowled, taking them all in while they were distracted. Sweat ran into his eyes and he squinted at them, one eye twitching from his stress. One wrong move, and they'd be pressed into action here. Looking off to the side out of the corner of his eye, he knew they wouldn't last. Not yet.

 _"This kid's knee is practically destroyed. We have to take him to the infirmary,"_ one of the medics said, drawing Vegeta's attention. Vegeta nodded his understanding.

They all started grabbing Trunks to lift him when the teenager hissed defensively. Completely out of the loop without the help of his scouter to translate, the only conclusion Trunks could come up with was that his father had betrayed him and thrown him to the wolves to save himself. In desperation, Trunks started summoning up whatever scraps of energy he had left. It was hard with the ki-draining metal clamps under his uniform, but he could make do.

 _Let them help you, boy,_ Vegeta ordered Trunks silently, startling the teenager. Trunks glanced over and made eye contact with his father who offered him a subtle nod. The teenager grinded his teeth together, not sure whether or not he could trust his father. Finally though, he gave him the benefit of the doubt. Extremely reluctantly, Trunks stopped struggling, even though he remained tense. He only relaxed a small bit when he realized that the Tuffles surrounding him seemed to be legitimately concerned for his knee.

 _"Got a new one for you,"_ the leader of the medical team announced as he led the way inside the infirmary. His team carried Trunks inside and placed the highly uncomfortable teenager on an examination table. Vegeta quietly stepped inside after them, glancing around. On the far wall, there was a whole slew of medications. He cocked his head to the side, scowling as his eyes finally settled on the doctor in the room. He was an old man with tussled white hair and sharp blue eyes, clad in a simple white robe.

 _"Well, what have we here?"_ the doctor asked cheerfully, turning to Trunks who gave him an uneasy look. _"Another training accident?"_

 _"His knee is destroyed,"_ one of the Tuffles explained, remaining in the room to help as the other two in the medical team left, not deeming the situation as terribly serious. Trunks flinched and hissed when they started examining his knee, trying his hardest not to show his massive distrust. Shooting a glance over at the third and quiet person in the room, Trunks growled to himself when he saw that Vegeta wasn't paying them one bit of attention.

Indeed, Vegeta was completely tuning them out as he curiously walked over to the wall with the medications. His dark, bloodshot eyes quickly scanned over what they had. Pain relief, vitamins, anesthetics… his scowl deepened in frustration, and he was about to leave altogether when he looked up at the top shelf and saw exactly what he was looking for.

Turning around, he quietly headed to the door and locked it.

 _"Alright son, help me get this uniform off this boy so I can examine the injury directly,"_ the doctor instructed, turning to the side as he flicked a syringe with an anesthetic. _"This shot will numb his pain in a hurry so we can fix up that knee."_

 _"Sure thing,"_ the other Tuffle said, looking at Trunks and seeing his intense discomfort. The teenager's face was bright red from the agony he was in as he breathed heavily through his teeth, making the Tuffle frown. _"Hey, you can relax. We're going to help you. What's your name?"_

 _"His name is Trunks,"_ a gruff voice snarled from behind him, the unmistakable feel of a rifle pressing up against the back of his skull. The Tuffle's eyes grew wide and he opened his mouth to speak, but he was dead before he got the chance. The Tuffle collapsed in a lifeless heap after Vegeta shot a hot laser beam right between his eyes. Trunks watched the cold-hearted murder without flinching, uncharacteristic indifference coloring the blue of his eyes as the doctor spun around to face them.

The old man's eyes widened in horror at the dead body on the floor. He gasped, _"What in the-"_ his words choked in his throat when Vegeta suddenly turned the rifle on him. Before he knew it, the rifle was pressed right against his forehead, eliciting terrified trembling from the doctor.

 _"You'll be next carcass in this room if you don't do EXACTLY as I say. Do not test me, old man,"_ Vegeta growled dangerously. Unable to stand the heat a second longer, the Saiyan Prince removed his helmet and let it fall to the floor, his hair instantly snapping up once freed. This time, Trunks did flinch at the sight of his father's badly bloodshot and glazed over eyes.

The doctor's trembling grew worse as he stared death right in its bloodshot eyes. He had heard stories of Vegeta's reputation for violence, but had never once suspected he would actually come face to face with the man himself. Quite suddenly, he was sorely regretting ever taking this job. _"Wh-what d-do you w-want?"_ he stuttered.

 _"Tell me where the antidote is for the poison I was given,"_ Vegeta ordered harshly.

 _"I don't know what the poison was."_ Vegeta closed his eyes and cracked his neck, his veins visibly throbbing on his neck and his temples. For some reason, this terrified the old man more than any words the Saiyan could possibly say. _"B-but if you tell me the symptoms…"_

"Father," Trunks cut in. Vegeta opened his eyes with visible effort, turning his delirious gaze to Trunks. "They know we're gone. I can hear them. We don't have much time."

Vegeta growled and pressed the rifle harder against the doctor's skin. _"I do not have time for your games, old man,"_ the prince hissed, his hands trembling. _"Tell me where the antidote is or I will rip your eyes out of your fucking skull. Understand?"_

_"How were you poisoned?"_

_"Ares sent a Tuffle whore for me and she gave me the venom."_

The doctor raised a trembling finger to the top shelf. _"If it's what I'm thinking of, it should be in the small yellow container at the top, second from the left."_

Vegeta grunted and snatched the syringe out of the doctor's hand.

"Here, kid, this will help your knee," he said, shoving it in Trunks' direction. Trunks blinked in surprise, before taking the syringe out of his father's hand. "Watch him," Vegeta ordered his son, fixing the old man with a cold glare that left no need for a verbal warning.

Trunks stared after his father for a moment before looking down at the syringe in his hand. Where the hell was he supposed to put it? Right in his knee?

As if sensing his indecision, the doctor silently pointed to the teenager's knee. The small, helpful gesture surprised Trunks and made the teenager feel a horrible pang of guilt in his heart over the man's inevitable death. Looking down at the dead Tuffle medic on the floor, at his dead and empty eyes ( _why_ did they always have to stare at him afterwards?), that sick and volatile feeling that had washed over him earlier when Vegeta had left him alone returned with a vengeance. It was as if there was a slow combustion of hatred and sinister violence burning deep inside of his chest; hatred towards the Tuffles, towards Frieza, towards the entire universe and the goddamn unfairness of it all.

And of course, a substantial amount of hatred was reserved for himself.

The teenager's hand holding the syringe was trembling when the doctor's hand settled over his. Trunks flinched at the contact, before pulling his hand away.

Too short to reach the top shelf and too weak for simple levitation, Vegeta desperately slammed the butt of his rifle up against the shelf. He caught the yellow bottle that fell, scowling as he tried reading what it said. He had to blink a few times to clear his vision enough, but it was indeed an antidote for poison. Figuring that was good enough confirmation, he forced the bottle open and chugged down all of the contents at once.

"Alright, kid," Vegeta said, tossing the bottle aside. "Let's move."

Trunks shifted his weight on the table, swinging his legs over the edge. Gingerly, he slid off and put very little weight on his bad leg, ignoring the fact that his right boot was inches away from a dead body. He could feel an explosion of warmth spreading through his knee and running up and down his leg, gratefully numbing his pain. Meanwhile, Vegeta slipped his helmet back on, turning to the old man in the room.

 _"How long until this antidote works?"_ he demanded.

Still clearly terrified, the doctor turned to the prince and tried his best not to stutter. _"It will begin to work immediately, but the effects are slow."_

"Hn," Vegeta grunted, turning to Trunks and tossing him his rifle back. He motioned with his head to the doctor in the room. "Take care of him at once," he ordered, before turning and heading towards the door.

The burning in Trunks' chest burned deeper at Vegeta's callous order, until he felt like it was going to burn him alive from the inside out. Trunks hesitated only a moment, a small, faint voice of reason trying valiantly to make itself heard in a dark corner of his mind. It was easily suppressed by the sheer terror that had consumed the teenager when he thought he had single-handedly caused his father's death for being merciful. His normally clear blue eyes were a darker, desensitized blue as he very nonchalantly raised his rifle to his shoulder, aiming for the spot right between the old man's horrified eyes with rock steady hands.

Trunks started to squeeze the trigger when an alarm suddenly went off. Vegeta cursed under his breath as Trunks looked over his shoulder at him.

"What the hell is that?" Trunks asked, glancing up at a red alarm that was blinking near the ceiling in the room. Vegeta ignored him for several seconds before slowly cracking open the door about an inch. Everyone was running now in the same direction, but for what? To track them down, or to fight someone else?

As if reading his mind, the old man in the room spoke up, _"Ares is calling for an emergency assembly."_

Vegeta turned his attention back to him, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. _"For what purpose?"_

The poor old doctor looked from Vegeta to the boy who was still aiming a rifle at him, and then back to Vegeta. He wished he could come up with a lie on the spot, but he honestly had no idea. Opting to come clean than be caught in a lie, he meekly answered with, _"I... I don't know."_

Father and son exchanged a look with silent understanding.

Trunks then turned and fired.

The teenager's right eye twitched involuntarily as he slowly lowered his rifle, staring down at the fallen Tuffle doctor with no remorse in his eyes. Vegeta looked on in approval, surveying the violence with familiar disinterest before turning back to the door. He peeked out again, and Trunks was just vaguely aware of him saying something that didn't quite register to him. The teen tilted his head in morbid curiosity as he watched a pool of blood spread under the body he was looking at. Huh, it was red just like his...

"Hey kid, let's go," Vegeta hissed to deaf ears. "We have to fall in with them before they find us here and our cover is blown."

Trunks scowled and clenched his jaw tightly, reminding himself that the man had to die.

"Do you fucking hear me talking to you, boy? I'll leave you here for the Tuffles to tear you apart if you don't move, _now!"_

 _Everyone_ there. They all had to die.

"TRUNKS!"

Trunks blinked and snapped out of it, finally realizing what he was doing. Swallowing heavily, he turned away from the dead body only to practically step on the other one in the room. He flinched as he stepped into blood, damn near losing his balance and falling into it. He grit his teeth at the pain in his leg, diminished but ever present as he forced himself to limp over to his father.

"Sorry," he mumbled sheepishly. Vegeta looked away from the crack in the door over to his son and silently observed him. The boy looked stoic and unaffected, but Vegeta perfected that front as a child and could see right through it. The kid was as transparent as glass; his morals and his sanity were crumbling by the minute. Hell, a few more years of this, and the boy would be just like him.

At the thought, the muscle in Vegeta's jaw flexed. He looked away again.

"Come on, kid. The Tuffles want a war. It's time we give them one."

* * *

Trunks had never felt so much heat in his life. He looked up a little bit to see two suns shining brightly in the sky. It was fitting that they were standing on sand at the moment, because it sure felt like they were in a desert.

Glancing to his right, standing about five men away from him, he saw his father. They were all lined up in a perfect grid, all standing in perfect attention like machines rather than men, with Trunks and Vegeta both near the back. Trunks squinted as sweat ran into his eye, before sneaking another look over at his father, but Vegeta was ignoring him.

More than anything, Trunks wished he would've asked Vegeta how the hell he could talk to him using only his mind. He tried thinking as hard as he could, but either Vegeta wasn't hearing him or he was just flat out ignoring him. Both were equally likely. What Trunks really wanted to know was why they were even out here. All he could do was trust in Vegeta's plan.

At least, Trunks sure as hell hoped he had a plan.

Trunks' heart was pounding with anticipation when a roar went through the Tuffle army, making him turn his attention straight ahead. Far ahead he could see Ares stride in front of his men on top of an elevated platform. To his right, he sensed a flicker of Vegeta's ki rise.

 _"Brothers,"_ Ares boomed loudly, immediately settling everyone down. _"We are here to wage war against the evil in the universe, the ruthless Saiyans... are you prepared to win the good fight?"_

Enthusiastically and ready to die for him, everyone (save two) roared their approval.

_"But before we take our revenge against Vegeta and his worthless race, we must face an even greater evil... it seems one or possibly more of Frieza's men are here. I ask each of you: are you ready for war and to avenge the innocent blood of our families and friends at the hands of these monsters?"_

Vegeta's ears were ringing as everyone roared again in frenzied affirmation. He scoffed, thinking these fools were completely delusional if they thought they stood a chance against whoever had arrived. Even the lowest ranked soldiers in Frieza's army could destroy this pathetic excuse of a military force. If Frieza sent one of his high-ranked lieutenants (or even worse: a member of the Ginyu Force), then everyone standing there was as good as dead.

Including him, he reluctantly conceded.

Especially him.

Ares took in the rained cheers and roars, coldly scanning his men through his sleek helmet. _I know you're here, Vegeta,_ he thought furiously to himself as he tried picking out two soldiers who looked worse for wear. He had made the mistake of assuming that all the Saiyan knew how to do was purge planets and follow Frieza's orders. He had sorely underestimated the prince's intelligence, and now had blood on his hands for that mistake. _Where are you, coward?_

Removing his helmet with one hand, Ares raised it to his men.

_"Everyone, raise your helmets high and repeat after me..."_

Trunks grit his teeth tightly together as the soldiers around him followed his lead. Neither he nor Vegeta moved a muscle. Vegeta's muscles were so taut with tension that his bones ached. Knowing they didn't have any time left, the prince closed his eyes and silently swore on his family's honor that he would not lose this fight. He was going to finish what his ancestors started if it was the last thing he ever did.

 _"Hey,"_ the soldier standing to Vegeta's right said, poking the Saiyan in the side with his rifle. Vegeta slowly opened his eyes which were bloodshot with intended murder. _"He said to raise our hel-"_

Vegeta hauled the startled and oblivious soldier to him by the rifle, spun it around so the rifle was placed securely under his chin, and fired. No one realized what was happening until the soldier's lifeless body landed in a heap, and by then, Vegeta had already viciously taken down the soldier that had been standing behind him, breaking his neck so violently he damn near took the man's head right off.

Vegeta slowly straightened as the soldiers near him all backed up in panic, raising their rifles and aiming them right at him. They all started screaming curses and pretty soon, _everyone's_ attention turned to him. Sneering at them, the proud prince reached up and removed his helmet, letting it fall to the sand. He tossed his rifle aside, not willing to use it any longer. Still unnoticed, Trunks stayed still as he watched, his right hand lowered in a tight fist as he worked on summoning up his ki.

Turning around with a look in his dark eyes like he had finally tumbled into the insanity he'd flirted with his whole life, Vegeta looked at the approaching form of Ares. He smirked and crossed his arms casually, as if they were the only two there and he wasn't completely outnumbered.

"So you finally show yourself, murderer," Ares snarled.

"Fight me like a man, Ares. Show your men how weak you truly are," Vegeta taunted, his smirk turning sinister. "Or, you could surrender now, bow at my feet and call me Lord Vegeta. I might spare one or two of your men if you showed me that respect."

Ares scoffed with disgust as he finally came about five feet away from the Saiyan Prince. "Surrender? Why would I ever surrender to a dead man?"

Vegeta opened his mouth to respond when the little energy his body had finally disappeared. Helplessly sinking to his knees, he leaned forward on both hands, his vision blurring. Ares smirked as Trunks breathed heavily in his helmet, his face red with pain and raw exhaustion as a faint yellow glow suddenly surrounded his fist. If it weren't for those fucking metal clamps draining his ki, he would've turned everyone there to ashes.

"You don't have much time left, Saiyan. Why don't you just give up?" Ares sneered. Vegeta gave a low chuckle, before that chuckle slowly morphed into loud, maniacal laughter. He leaned his head back and laughed like a madman as Trunks watched him with wide eyes, convinced his father had finally lost it completely. The Tuffles surrounding him all looked at each warily, their rifles still pointed at him as Ares took a threatening step closer. "What is so funny?" he demanded.

"Everyone here is going to die," Vegeta laughed.

Trunks frowned, his heart pounding in concern when he suddenly sensed a different power level. Looking over, standing where Ares had been been addressing his army, was one enraged Saiyan. Off his right hand was a levitating, pulsing white ball of brilliant energy.

"Hey, you freaks!" Nappa yelled, drawing everyone's attention. The Saiyan growled, the vein in his temple pulsing furiously as the energy ball grew stronger. "Heads up!"

Rearing back, Nappa launched the ball of energy to the sky where it exploded into blinding white light.

Everyone who looked directly at the light had their retinas burned off on the spot, except for one hybrid teenager who found himself completely mesmerized by the light. Left breathless by the deep and primitive calling in his blood that he had never felt before, Trunks took a staggering step back.

Still on his knees and ignoring the blinded men screaming around him, Vegeta stared up at the light. His canines extended and his pupils seeming to be completely gone, Vegeta's entire body was pulsing involuntarily in rhythm with his heartbeat. Having forgotten about the prince, Ares turned and instantly knew what was happening.

"Get him! Don't let him make the transformation!" Ares screamed, pointing at Vegeta. The soldiers who still had the wherewithal to listen to him turned to fire at Vegeta right as fur ruptured onto his skin. They were instantly incinerated by Trunks' vicious ki blast before they ever got the chance. With exceptional skill, Trunks controlled his blast so Vegeta was left unharmed. Ares fell back from the explosion, finally looking over at Trunks in shock. The teenager reached up and took off his helmet, gasping in a lungful of fresh air, his lavender hair darkened with sweat and stuck to his forehead.

That was all the distraction Vegeta needed.

Releasing a furious scream that quickly turned into a deep, raw, animalistic roar, Vegeta suddenly exploded in size as everyone around him showed their true colors and ran away in terror. Vegeta's Tuffle uniform was instantly shredded, the metal clamps he'd been wearing snapping off like they were plastic, leaving him in his original dark blue trousers and white boots. Trunks dropped his helmet at his side, before losing the strength in his leg and falling back. His eyes widened as he watched Vegeta's eyes turn blood red as fur covered him completely. He had never seen anything like it in his life, having only heard stories from Gohan. Looking over, Nappa was also making the same transformation, his Saiyan uniform easily expanding with his size.

Nappa and Vegeta both faced each other, before releasing simultaneous, powerful roars.

Half of the Tuffle army immediately lost all desire to fight "the good fight" and took off running to save themselves as hysteria filled the air. The rest started firing their rifles in desperation as the two Saiyans started crushing everyone that moved. Trunks was completely blown away by how easily both Vegeta and Nappa moved despite their size. Neither had any difficulty at all dodging the laser beams shot at them by the Tuffle rifles. He could have sworn that he heard Vegeta laugh as he slammed his enormous boot on a group of fleeing Tuffles, killing them instantly.

Suddenly in mid-breath, a large and powerful hand reached out and grasped him tightly. His blood running cold with shock and horror, he could only struggle helplessly as Vegeta lifted him so they were eye level.

"What are you doing, Father!" Trunks screamed at him, looking into red eyes that he would never have a chance at reading. "I'm on your side!"

Vegeta stared at the teenager, who was certain that this time, his father would make good on his threat to kill him. Trunks clenched his teeth tightly as Vegeta raised his other large hand to him, putting two fingers on the sides of Trunks' neck, before applying pressure. Trunks closed his eyes, telling himself he shouldn't have felt betrayed. Vegeta had flat out told him that he would make him pay for putting him in this situation to begin with. He waited for the crushing pressure that would kill him, too drained of his strength to fight back.

Needless to say, he was shocked when Vegeta applied just enough pressure to break the ki-draining clamp around his neck. Blinking in surprise, Trunks looked at the creature holding him and could've sworn he saw a smirk.

"You're not useful to me with these things on you, boy," the creature rumbled in a deep and, dare he say it, amused voice. Trunks couldn't help the relief that coursed through him, and already felt the difference it made not to have that thing around his neck. It took Vegeta only a few seconds, breaking the clamps on his son like they were nothing, only mild little zaps tingling his fur upon touching them.

"Help Nappa clean up this mess," Vegeta ordered, lowering Trunks and then releasing him altogether.

"What about you?" Trunks demanded, but Vegeta had already turned away from him. Figuring his father was capable of taking care of himself, Trunks looked down at his right hand. With little effort, he formed a powerful blue ball of ki in the palm of his hand. He smirked.

Now that was more like it.

Meanwhile, having seen the legendary Oozaru transformations up close, Ares decided he wanted no part of it. Somewhere along the way, his master plan for revenge had blown up in his face. He had no idea how that had happened. He had spent _years_ planning Vegeta's downfall, and everything had gone according to plan. Even Vegeta's son, the heir to the throne and a boy Ares never even knew existed, had been perfectly gift-wrapped for his revenge. The stars had lined up perfectly and it was only a matter of time.

Now hearing the anguished screams of his men being slaughtered by relentless ki blasts and crushed by ape-like monsters, Ares was left to his last option: retreat.

Bursting through one of the scientific development rooms on his military base, he quickly strode over to the device in the center of the room. Not wasting any time, he instantly flipped open one of the control panels and activated the device so he could summon up a space ship.

That's as far as he got when the wall suddenly exploded, crumbling to pieces. Faster than he could react, an enormous hand reached in and grabbed hold of him.

"Well well well, what have we here?" Vegeta growled, pulling Ares out of the building and lifting him up. He squeezed him hard, laughing when he felt Ares' armor cracking under the force of his grip. "I could smell your fear from miles away, Tuffle."

"Curse you, Saiyan," Ares spat out, before feeling Vegeta's grip tighten mercilessly. Ares coughed up blood in response, his armor caving and putting an extraordinary amount of pressure on his ribs.

"Hey, I thought your armor was supposed to be impenetrable. I'm disappointed," Vegeta's voice rumbled deeply. He reached up with his other hand and flicked Ares' helmet off as if he was a toy, before laughing loudly.

"Coward," Ares rasped out, one eye shut in excruciating pain. "Fight me without this transformation!"

"Who are you calling a coward, fool?" Vegeta snarled, squeezing Ares even harder. "You had me trapped like a mongrel pet and you poisoned me!"

"What, are you afraid you'll lose? You should be," Ares taunted, pushing on. If Vegeta was known for anything other than his cruelty, it was his pride. Knowing he was close to being crushed to death, Ares pressed on undeterred in desperation, "I've been trained in-" he spat out blood as Vegeta applied bone-crushing force with his grip, "-energy techniques. You are no match for me, Vegeta."

It was a bold-faced lie, but he was a desperate man.

Enraged at the blatant challenge and dangerously close to having lost his mind, Vegeta released Ares who fell almost twenty feet to the ground. The prince turned to the light in the sky and roared his fury, drawing the sudden attention of Trunks and Nappa. The two stopped their merciless assaults to look over at the prince. Extending one hand towards the light palm out, Vegeta made a tight fist. The light suddenly exploded, and this time, Trunks had to look away or he would've been blinded on the spot.

Ares winced as he rolled over to his side in the sand, clutching his ribs. Not too far from him were the crushed remains of a once proud army he had built from the ground up. He coughed up blood, not having the strength to stand.

"You were saying?"

Ares' eyes grew wide as he looked over to see Vegeta approaching him. Having lost the transformation, the Saiyan who seemed utterly indestructible only moments ago now looked like a complete wreck. He was running on fumes now, standing by sheer hatred alone, but Vegeta had never turned a challenge down in his life. Breathing heavily with only one eye open, clutching his side which was now horribly blistered from his burns, Vegeta staggered towards his enemy.

Ares painfully forced himself up to his feet before slowly assuming a hesitant fighting stance. Deep down, he knew he didn't stand a chance against Vegeta at full strength. But the broken prince in front of him was far from 100 percent. A lucky shot here or there, and he might have a chance.

Vegeta spit out a mouthful of blood to the sand, before flashing a smirk. "Hope you're ready to die, Tuffle. I promise, I'll make your last moments as painful as possible."

"Ready when you are, Sai-"

Vegeta phased out and reappeared behind Ares, gripping him by his red hair and bending him backwards before he could finish the word. Before Ares could even register that Vegeta was now behind him, the prince brutally slammed his fist down right into Ares' sternum. He snickered at the way his enemy writhed in the sand.

"And here I thought you'd be a challenge," Vegeta snorted. "What a waste of my time."

Leaning over with a wince, Vegeta grabbed Ares by the hair again to drag him back up. He didn't have much energy left, so he figured he'd make this faster than usual. No sooner had Vegeta decided to put Ares out of his misery once and for all than he was met with a desperate fistful of sand right to his eyes. Letting go of Ares, his hands went to his face as he screamed curses, taking a couple of steps back. Having bought himself precious seconds, Ares flipped open a compartment in the armor covering his forearm and pressed the button that was there.

"You worthless piece of trash, I'm going to beat you until you're fucking unrecognizable!" Vegeta screamed in a frightening rage, his eyes burning as he staggered back over to Ares. Completely livid now, he reached down and hauled his enemy up by the hair. Ares just laughed at him much in the same way that Vegeta had laughed earlier.

"Go ahead," Ares taunted him, talking with a mouth full of blood as Vegeta pulled a dangerous fist back. "Kill me. It won't save you."

Vegeta faltered at that, his blood-red eyes narrowing. "What?"

Ares smirked at him, and Vegeta already knew he wouldn't like what he heard. "I thought there was a chance this might happen. My men planted a bomb deep in this planet's mantle. I already activated it. This planet is going to blow," he laughed. "I win in the end, Vegeta."

Vegeta's lip twitched. He released Ares, who fell back into the sand, laughing the entire way. Raising one trembling hand towards his enemy, he summoned up all of the energy he had left and began unloading: ki blast, after ki blast, after ki blast. Again, and again, and again. Even when Ares' laughter had long died, Vegeta kept firing, his teeth grinding together the entire time. To have come so far only to be one-upped in the end made something inside of him snap.

He didn't stop firing until a hand came over his wrist.

"Hey, that's enough," Trunks said. "Save your strength."

"We need to go, Vegeta," Nappa added.

As if on cue, the ground beneath them started to violently rumble like an earthquake. The strength of it knocked all three Saiyans off their feet.

"The planet's going to blow, we need to get out of here! Where the fuck are the space pods?" Vegeta yelled at Nappa.

"They're coming!"

Finally, the rumbling ceased. The relief lasted only for a few seconds before all three of them could make out an explosion in the distance. Trunks forced himself up to his feet, his leg still gratefully numb. All in all, his strength was slowly returning, and he was back on his feet in no time. He turned and offered his father a hand, but Vegeta stubbornly batted it away. He raised his head and gave Trunks a cold glare through his one good eye.

"You aren't going back with us, boy."

"What?" Trunks asked, genuinely surprised by this. "But-"

They were interrupted by three space pods crashing into the sand about ten yards away from them. Vegeta couldn't believe how much he actually missed those things.

"We have to get off this planet," Nappa said, turning and hauling Vegeta up to his feet without asking for his permission. The prince growled in annoyance at this, but he was too weak to stand any longer under his own power. Turning around, he made eye contact with Trunks.

"I want you to leave, kid," he told him bluntly, his features setting into his familiar scowl. "Just give the verbal command and tell the computer what planet you want to go to. I don't care where you go, but make sure I never see you again. If I do, I'll kill you myself. Understand?"

Trunks stared blankly at Vegeta, not believing his ears. After everything they had been through together, his father _still_ hated him. He could see the hatred clear as day, and he couldn't help the disappointment that settled deep inside of him. He had been under the impression that Vegeta had, at the very least, tolerated his existence instead of despising it. But it seemed like he couldn't have been more wrong...

Nappa shot Trunks an apologetic look, before pushing Vegeta along, single-handedly holding the completely exhausted prince up on his feet. "We gotta go, Vegeta. You too, kid, unless ya wanna be fried on this planet."

"Yeah," Trunks mumbled, limping behind them as fast as he could just as another, closer explosion went off. Really, he should've been happy about this. He could finally go to Earth. Did it really matter what Vegeta thought of him?

Trunks climbed into his space pod last, instinctively looking around to make sure there were no explosives planted. Lights flickered on as soon as the door closed after him. Another explosion went off and the ground started to rumble again. Trunks squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his eyes, trying to remember the command.

_"Destination?"_

"Um," Trunks stammered wearily. Outside of his pod, he heard Vegeta and Nappa's pods take off. He lost his train of thought completely as his mind went back to his father. Would he get in trouble with Frieza if the planet was destroyed? Worry tightened in his stomach at the thought.

 _"Destination?"_ the computer prompted him again.

"Oh. Right. Um, set destination to Planet Earth."

_"Destination set to: Planet Earth, galaxy #7, south sector. Confirm or deny."_

"Yes, that's right, let's go," Trunks hissed impatiently. He was instantly shot back into his seat as the space pod took off into the air.

_"Destination set. Trip length qualifies for induced sleep if user desires."_

It was good timing. No sooner had the dark universe come into view through his oval window, than a brilliant flash of light erupted, making Trunks raise his hand to shield his eyes. Exhausted himself, Trunks leaned back, finally releasing a deep breath. He was about to close his eyes and rest when he saw a familiar button on the control panel. It was the button he had used to disengage the communications before.

He stared at it for a few seconds, tempted. It would be wrong to listen in on Nappa and Vegeta uninvited. What would his mother do if she was here?

Trunks pressed the button.

"-fucking knew and you didn't tell me?" his father's irate voice came in. His harsh tone made Trunks flinch.

"I'm sorry, Vegeta. I just promised your father that I would try my best to look out for your lineage."

There was silence for about ten minutes. Trunks was actually dozing off when Nappa's voice abruptly woke him.

"Do you think it was a good idea to let the kid go, Vegeta? He was a tough kid."

Suddenly very awake, Trunks waited for the answer. Finally after about five minutes, Vegeta's exhausted voice came through.

"It doesn't matter. My flesh and blood won't serve Frieza. Not while I live."

"Yeah, well, the bastard's not happy at all with us right now."

"What else is new," came the mumbled response.

"Yeah, but they're talking about desertion. What are we going to-"

"Nappa, just shut up and let me fucking sleep," Vegeta replied, his voice weary.

That was the end of the conversation. Trunks leaned forward and pushed the button to turn off the communications. The teenager rubbed his eyes as his head started to spin. His father asking him to leave and not come back didn't seem to be driven out of hatred at all - at least, not completely. While he would've normally been thrilled, he was instead worried sick. Vegeta was likely to be reprimanded again by Frieza for something that was mostly Trunks' fault. His stomach churned at the thought that Frieza might say to hell with it this time and kill his father like he was nothing. Could he live with not knowing what was in store for his father?

In a simple moment of clarity, he realized that no, he could not.

Trunks then changed course and turned back around.


	11. Freedom or Death

"I have no idea what you're talking about…"

"Do not take me to be a fool," a deadly calm voice warned. "I _know_ you made the order. You did this. It has your name written all over it!"

"These accusations are really offending me. Honestly, I'm hurt. Just completely _destroyed_ on the inside by the lack of trust-"

"Spare me your fucking theatrics, Frieza. Aside from my men, only yours have the power to destroy a planet the way Rithica was destroyed."

"Ah, yes, my men are quite strong, aren't they?"

"We set the rules for the Planet Trade Organization together, and you broke them. Rithica was one of MY planets. It was in MY quadrant in the north sector, and you sent your men to destroy it, and now you have the audacity to deny what you've done?"

"Goodness! What dramatics. I assure you, I did not give any orders to have the planet you keep ranting about destroyed. In fact, I've never even heard of the planet until right now."

"My men saw three space pods leaving the planet that were YOURS. And not too long ago, one of my planets was mysteriously purged of all life with no sign of who was responsible!"

Frieza chuckled, his tail waving dangerously behind him. His hands were clasped together behind his back, his grip tightening with barely restrained rage.

"My dear, _precious_ brother, might I make a suggestion that your men spend less time tracking random space pods and more time protecting planets in your quadrant? Perhaps instead of ranting at me over such a small loss, one that I had _nothing_ to do with, you would be better served focusing on ruling over that small thing you call an empire."

"I don't know what your game is, Frieza," Cooler hissed over Frieza's scouter. "But it ends now. If I see another one of your space pods in my quadrant, our truce is over. Do you understand what I'm saying, _brother?_ "

"That sounds an awful lot like a threat," Frieza replied calmly, though his eyes were narrowed into furious slits. "Is that a _threat_ , Cooler?"

"It's a warning."

"I don't take kindly to warnings."

"Well I don't take kindly to profitable planets in my quadrant being destroyed. And I'm sure Father won't take kindly to you disrespecting the rules we've established. One of which was that you stay the hell out of my quadrant. Or have you forgotten this?"

Frieza glared out through a window of his flagship at the vast expanse of space. It was true that he had agreed to stay out of the sections of the universe that belonged to his older brother, mostly because he wanted to keep Cooler appeased and at bay. Not because he feared him, but because Cooler annoyed the living shit out of him.

However, unbeknown to the elder Cold son, Frieza had been cleverly and covertly breaking that agreement for years now. Cooler didn't have Frieza's natural-born instincts to rule, and many things slipped by his notice, a fact Frieza capitalized on time and time again. Frieza would find a profitable planet in his brother's quadrant that Cooler hadn't paid much attention to, and would send his men to purge it. He'd then sell the planet and reap the profits, and then send his men back to purge it again. The cycle would repeat until Cooler finally ventured over, when Frieza would finally back off and set his sights elsewhere.

Rithica was the next planet Frieza had set his sights on, an isolated and plentiful little planet, rich with wildlife and vegetation. Cooler would have never noticed Frieza's tampering if the damn planet hadn't been _destroyed._

"I tell you again that I did not order this to happen," Frieza said, his voice deceptively calm. It wasn't a lie, after all. His order had been to purge the planet, not destroy it. His tail swept back and forth behind him in a dangerous rhythm as he continued, "But out of the kindness of my heart, I will launch my own personal investigation to find out exactly who is responsible for this terrible deed."

"You do that. And remember what I said."

"Always a pleasure, brother," Frieza said with mock politeness, before reaching up and pressing a button on his red scouter to end the transmission. His glare turned murderous as he pressed the button a few more times. "Zarbon?"

His right hand man's voice came through two seconds later. "Yes, Lord Frieza?"

"Come here at once."

"Right away, Lord Frieza."

Frieza's tail waved methodically behind him while he brooded on how this was going to change things. Now that his brother had finally started to catch on to his game, it was going to be much harder to swipe out planets from his quadrant. He was likely going to have to kill Cooler off for good now, which he wasn't opposed to; hell, it was only a matter of time anyways. But such an act would require planning so as not to draw his father's attention, and he had other things he had to address.

Needless to say, he was not pleased. He was not pleased at all.

The metallic doors slid open behind him. Zarbon strode in and then lowered himself to one knee to the marble floor, observing his lord warily from behind. Even though he was the one who overlooked the logistics of running Frieza's army, he himself was not above reprimand. He recognized Frieza's tone over his scouter and already knew that his lord had spoken to Cooler. Everyone in Frieza's army hated the tyrant's older brother simply because he aggravated Frieza, and that usually meant very bad things for them.

Frieza slowly turned around to face Zarbon, his hands still grasped behind his back. He leaned forward a little, curiosity on his features as he asked, "Zarbon, remind me again - who exactly did you give the Rithica purging assignment to?"

"I gave that assignment, as well as the Liyana assignment, to the Saiyans, Lord Frieza."

"All four of them?"

"Yes, sire."

"I see," Frieza mused, falling into thought.

All of this additional trouble, just because four particular Saiyans hadn't completed a simple and routine purging assignment. The planet wasn't even filled with warriors; there was no reason for this failure that Frieza could see. After all, Frieza had taken measures to ensure that outside of his army, Vegeta had no equal in the universe. He had personally taught Vegeta how to be cruel and merciless so the Saiyan could not be beaten. That meant there was only one logical explanation for this mission not being completed properly.

Treason.

Frieza straightened and slowly turned back around to look back out the glass window, giving Zarbon his back. It hadn't escaped Frieza's attention that Vegeta had been undermining his authority much more than usual these days. Frieza personally beat the Saiyan nearly half to death after each infraction, sparing Vegeta's life where he would've killed off nearly everyone else under his rule, but the Saiyan just didn't _get it._ And now, his insubordination had cost Frieza the opportunity to steal profitable planets away from his brother.

It was completely unacceptable, and Vegeta was going to pay with his blood.

"Cancel the Liyana purge. We won't venture into that quadrant of the north sector until I take care of some other business. For now, you have a new assignment, Zarbon," Frieza finally said, his eyes dark and evil. "I want the heads of Nappa, Raditz, and that half-breed Saiyan boy here within the next twenty hours, so I can crush their skulls beneath my feet. And as for Vegeta, I want him found and brought to me alive. I have something _very_ special planned for my favorite little pet."

"But we're not even sure they survived the explosion-"

"Oh, they survived. They're out there somewhere, all of them. And if they aren't here within the next twenty hours, _you_ will be the one whose skull I crush beneath my foot. Am I clear, Zarbon?"

"Lord Frieza," Zarbon started, trying to keep his panic out of his voice. It was to no avail as his words came out rushed, "We have been trying to track Vegeta and his men for some time now. Their original space pods were all taken off the grid almost as soon as they left base for their purging assignments. Nappa checked in several days ago, and he took some new space pods with him back to Rithica, but the tracking in _those_ pods was destroyed by some kind of electromagnetic interference when the planet exploded."

"So look into their scouters," Frieza said, as though it was obvious.

"We have, Lord Frieza. Only Vegeta and Nappa's scouters are currently online, but they have some kind of encryption that our team of technicians can't break through. We therefore can't pinpoint their location, and we can't communicate with them."

Vegeta must have tampered with the space pods and the scouters, Frieza deduced. The Saiyan knew good and damn well that it was against the rules to do such things. Yes, treason seemed to be on the horizon, and it was best that Frieza took care of it now.

"Well then, I suggest you get to work so you can meet your deadline," he said, already planning what he could do to break Vegeta once and for all.

Zarbon's face paled a little, as he silently wondered if Frieza heard a word he just said. He cleared his throat, "Lord Frieza, the Saiyans could be anywhere by now. We need more time to find them. Sir, your deadline is…" he struggled to find the words, before finally saying, "Impossible to make."

"I'm sorry, could you speak up and articulate your words, Zarbon? I don't think I heard that last part correctly," Frieza said, his tail curling and uncurling threateningly.

Zarbon knew that there was nothing wrong with Frieza's hearing. He looked down and relented, "…I will have three Saiyan heads and one dethroned prince here within the next twenty hours, Lord Frieza."

"Ah, now I can hear you clearly. Now remember, Zarbon, I want Vegeta alive. I will be very, _very_ displeased if he is brought to me dead. Understand?"

"Yes, Lord Frieza."

"Good. Now get to work."

* * *

_Freedom or death, Nappa. One or the other. No matter what, Frieza's reign over us ends today._

Nappa released a deep, anxious breath as he mulled over Vegeta's last words to him. It was Vegeta's (correct) opinion that they were both as good as dead if they went back to Frieza's home base planet, so they might as well make a break for it while they could. And that's exactly what they were doing. It was all or nothing now. If they were caught, they would be killed for sure. Nappa's tail tightened unconsciously around his waist. The stakes were at an ultimate high now, with both Vegeta and Frieza knowing each other extremely well. The only difference was Frieza had an entire army at his disposal, whereas there were only three men on Vegeta's side.

Well… two now.

Nappa had his arms crossed over his chest while he stood protectively next to the rejuvenation chamber the prince was currently in. The younger Saiyan had been in there over a day now, having passed out cold in his space pod after his ordeal with the Tuffles. He'd been completely unresponsive when they finally landed, despite Nappa's efforts to wake him. Finally, Nappa had simply hauled Vegeta out of his space pod and slung him over his shoulder, carrying him from his space pod into the rejuvenation chamber as quickly as possible. All Nappa could do now was wait, but every moment that passed made cold sweat run down the large Saiyan's back.

Before Vegeta had succumbed to his exhaustion, he had given Nappa a final set of instructions. Nappa, to his credit, had followed his prince's directions down to the letter. Vegeta had set course for them to land on Frieza Planet #30, a small planet mostly used for equipment storage, with little personnel. There had only been a few soldiers of the army there when they arrived; exactly what Vegeta had been counting on. Nappa had made quick work of them before they could get the chance to report back to Frieza or Zarbon that he and Vegeta were there. No sooner had he done so, than he heard Zarbon's voice come over the scouters of the dead soldiers, giving the order that if any Saiyan stepped foot on the planet, to let them know at once. Nappa had gathered up the scouters in complete silence, knowing that if he destroyed them all that Zarbon would know immediately. He had dumped the scouters outside of the base, gone back for Vegeta when the coast was clear, and hadn't left his prince's side since.

Truth be told, it unnerved him that Vegeta had picked, of all planets, one of Frieza's bases for them to land on. The prince believed without a shadow of a doubt that one of the last places Zarbon and Frieza would look for them was on one of Frieza's own planets. After an entire day passed without incident, Nappa conceded that Vegeta might have been right.

Still. He looked over at the rejuvenation chamber where the prince was. The burns on Vegeta's body were almost fully healed, much to his relief. As soon as Vegeta came to, they were going to make a run for it. Nappa had no clue where they were going to go, or what they were going to do, but he figured Vegeta would have a plan. The prince always had a plan.

One thing was for sure. They couldn't stay there too much longer. Someone was bound to notice that no one from the base on this planet was checking in. Nappa glanced over at Vegeta again, before deciding that he would give his prince another few hours to heal. After that, for better or worse, they were going to get the hell out of there.

The large Saiyan jumped with a start when the lights on his blue scouter flickered. He cursed, his heart immediately pounding in his chest. Damn, he was on edge. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down when he saw that it was just an incoming transmission. He stared at the scouter coordinates, before frowning. The prince had strictly forbidden him from taking any kind of transmission, but the scouter trying to reach him was Vegeta's - which meant it was Raditz checking in.

 _Well… he didn't say not to talk to Raditz,_ Nappa reasoned. He walked out of the room, reaching up and pressing the button on his scouter a few times to receive the transmission.

* * *

"That is completely UNACCEPTABLE!" Zarbon roared.

"I'm sorry, sir," a meek, short red alien technician said nervously as he looked up at the furious green alien leaning over him. "We're trying our best to hack the encryption key but the design on Vegeta's scouter is custom made. We can't get anything-"

"I DON'T CARE IF IT'S CUSTOM MADE!" Zarbon exploded in frustration, startling everyone in the room and making them gape at the uncharacteristic outburst. Zarbon was usually very smooth and composed, but what they didn't know was that Frieza wanted blood spilled, and if it wasn't red like Vegeta's, then it was going to be blue like Zarbon's.

Ten of the twenty hours were up on Frieza's deadline, and Zarbon was losing his patience by the minute. He had radioed into every planet in Frieza's rule and warned everyone to be on guard for the Saiyans. He'd then dispersed the army and sent them looking into all nearby friendly planets, but it was nearly impossible to blindly track down four Saiyans in the short deadline Frieza had set. His only hope was that one of the technicians could crack into one of the Saiyan's scouters and at least give him some kind of lead. The crew on Frieza's flagship was working to the bone trying to come up with a technical solution, but whatever encryption Vegeta had put on the Saiyan scouters, it was damn good.

"I want to know where those rotten monkey bastards are, and you'd all better have an answer for me within the next hour, or I'll deliver all of YOUR heads to Lord Frieza instead!" Zarbon promised, glaring at every technician in the lab.

"Sir, we need a transmission to give us a framework we could hack into," the technician said warily, his complexion turning redder than his skin at the threat Zarbon was making. "Neither Nappa nor Vegeta have made any kind of transmission. Until we have a live link, we're stuck."

"Well you had better think of something, if you know what's good for you," Zarbon warned in a cold voice. He then spun on his heel and marched out of the lab angrily, his blue cape flowing behind him. He stood right outside the lab doors, reaching up to his scouter and pressing the button a few times. "Dodoria, come in."

After a few seconds, Dodoria's voice came through, "Dodoria here."

"How are things looking on your end?" Zarbon asked, hoping his comrade was having better luck back on their home base planet than he was on Frieza's flagship.

Dodoria looked over the shoulder of the closest lab technician to him, seeing him trying to decode the last encrypted transmission sent on Vegeta's scouter. It looked like gibberish to him; for all he knew, the man was playing some game in a language he didn't understand. He frowned and left the room to speak to Zarbon in private.

"Not good," he finally answered in a low voice, walking down a hallway. "No one recognizes this encryption Vegeta used. It's custom-"

"Yes, it's custom made, I know," Zarbon cut off impatiently. "Keep me updated if your group makes any progress. Lord Frieza's deadline is tight."

"How much longer?"

"Ten hours."

"…That's not enough time-"

"Don't remind me. Just do what you can."

"Will do."

Zarbon sighed and took a moment to regain his calm, before turning around and heading back into the lab. As soon as he did, a technician ran over to him, waving a roll of freshly printed sheets.

"We just got a live link between Vegeta and Nappa's scouters, Zarbon," the technician said, before handing over the sheets with a smirk to a very relieved Zarbon. "And we cracked the encryption. Here is the transcript of the conversation, and here are the coordinates for both scouters…"

Meanwhile, back on Frieza's home base planet, Dodoria was cursing as he strode down a hallway. There weren't any spare scouters in the equipment room, and his was acting up. He couldn't even force a low ranked soldier to give him his, since the place was mostly deserted, with everyone hunting down the Saiyans per Zarbon's orders. Hissing in frustration, the pink alien rounded a corner to go see if the labs had any extra scouters on hand.

As soon as he did, he was violently blindsided by what felt like a missile, sending him crashing through the doors of an empty storage room. Dodoria let out a startled cry as he was sent sprawling on his stomach, his scouter sent flying. He immediately growled and went to retaliate, already swearing a painful and slow murder of whoever was stupid enough to assault him. He only made it up to his hands and knees, though, before the unmistakable cold metal of a sword was pressed right under his chin.

"Make one wrong move and I will cut your fucking head off," a deadly serious voice snarled from behind him. "Don't test me."

"What the-" Dodoria gasped when an excruciating pressure was pressed on the small of his back. He struggled in vain to break free, but whoever had him pinned down was extremely powerful. Dodoria growled, "Who are you? What do you want?"

"I ask the questions here, not you, got it?" the voice hissed. Dodoria frowned and stopped struggling, even though the sword was still under his chin. That voice. He recognized that voice… but from where?

"I don't have to tell you a goddamn thin-" Dodoria's voice was suddenly muffled by a blue jacket being wrapped around his mouth to the back of his head faster than he could blink, the sword removed. Suddenly, a debilitating blow was delivered to the small of his back, paralyzing him from the waist down. Dodoria's scream of agony was muffled by the jacket. He squeezed his eyes shut in misery as he felt the tip of the sword pressing right against the back of his head.

"Now we can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way. Your choice," Trunks sneered from behind him. The teenager glanced over his shoulder briefly, using his senses to make sure no one was close by, before turning his attention back to Dodoria. "You tell me what Frieza's done with Vegeta, and I _might_ let you live. If you even attempt to scream, you'll be dead before anyone hears you. Understand?"

Dodoria lay perfectly still, exhaling furiously through his nose, not willing to give in. Trunks growled and mercilessly drove his good knee into Dodoria's shattered vertebrae, making the alien squirm in agony underneath him. Trunks kept applying the pressure until Dodoria finally nodded desperately. Trunks let go and pulled his jacket away, and Dodoria immediately released a hiss of pain as he lowered his face to the cold floor.

"Well?" Trunks demanded angrily, pressing his sword into the back of Dodoria's head for emphasis. "Where is Vegeta?"

"No one knows!" Dodoria growled in frustration. Trunks frowned at that, his resolve diminishing a bit.

"…What?"

"The bastard is completely off the grid! No one knows where he is, but Zarbon is working on cracking the encryption on his scouter as we speak." Dodoria chuckled a little, before adding in a smug voice, "It's only a matter of time before one of our teams figures it out. That fucking monkey won't run forever. We'll find him. You just wait and see."

As if on cue, Dodoria's scouter whirled to life. Dodoria and Trunks both glanced up at it as Zarbon's voice came through.

"Vegeta and Nappa's locations confirmed: both are on Planet Frieza #30. Still working on pinpointing Raditz' exact location. He's in a space pod in flight. Requesting surveillance on Planet Frieza #30 effective immediately. No one leaves the planet until I give the command. Landing shortly."

 _Shit,_ Trunks thought bleakly, the blood draining from his face. Despite the agony he was in, Dodoria laughed.

"They're already there! Soon, Vegeta will be captured, humiliated, and then finally put out of his misery."

"How far is that planet from here?"

"A two hour flight. You'll never make it." the pink alien said smugly, before finally managing to twist his head around to see who exactly was pinning him down. He snorted at the sight of the teenager behind him. "Ah, I remember you now, boy. Vegeta's new-found mutt. You got a price on your head too, kid."

Trunks looked down and scowled. "I do, huh?"

"That's right," Dodoria confirmed. "You and the rest of you goddamn Saiyans. You're all dead. Every last one of you."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Trunks growled.

He then drove his sword through Dodoria's flesh, killing him instantly. The teenager withdrew his sword, grabbed his jacket, and slowly got up to his feet, wincing as he did. His knee was still bothering him, but he was ignoring it. He cursed under his breath, absently wiping his sword clean on the back of Dodoria's armor. Except for a couple men who had spotted him when he climbed out of his space pod (both of whom were now dead with their bodies completely disintegrated), Trunks had snuck into the base with ease, what with his ability to keep his power level down. The first thing he'd done was go get his clothes back from the old changing room, along with his sword. It wouldn't hurt having the weapon in case push came to shove and he had to face Frieza.

Except the tyrant wasn't there. Trunks slipped on his leather Capsule Corp jacket, looking down at Dodoria. He should've asked the alien where Frieza was before he killed him. There was no way he could make it to the planet Vegeta was on in time to save him from being captured, assuming his father was actually there. However, Trunks had gotten a taste of Frieza's twisted state of mind. If Vegeta was going to die, it wasn't going to be at Zarbon's hand. It would be at Frieza's. Instead of chasing a backtrail that would lead nowhere and waste valuable time, it was best that he just sit tight and wait to see if Vegeta was even captured in the first place.

Determined now, Trunks put his sword back in its holster and slung it over his shoulder, a hard edge to his blue eyes. Turning around, he headed out to find out where Frieza was, so he could be ready to save his father if need be.

And if he had to torture every last being on base to get the tyrant's location, then so be it.

* * *

Vegeta frowned, his senses picking up on the ice cold fluid he was submerged in as he slowly regained consciousness. It was a peaceful sensation, almost serene, and he relished in it for a few moments in his foggy state. He took a deep breath through his oxygen mask, sending a flurry of bubbles up in the rejuvenation chamber. Slowly, his mind started to focus as it sorted through the fiasco with the Tuffles, as though he was flipping pages in a book. The more images he saw flash through his mind, the more the weight of the situation bared down on him, and the more his ki flared up.

The prince suddenly growled, and his ki exploded in a flash of blinding white light. The glass of the rejuvenation chamber cracked for a second, and then shattered instantly from the pressure wave Vegeta effortlessly generated. The fluid flooded out and coated the floor of the medical room. Vegeta threw off his mask and stood up, the healing fluid still dripping from his body as he climbed out of the tank.

Glass crunched under his bare feet, cutting into his skin, but Vegeta didn't notice as he looked down at his naked torso, examining himself. His burns were gone, and that lingering pain that he'd been fighting due to the Tuffle poison was diminished. Finally, he looked down at the palms of his hands. He was healed, fully and completely, and he could feel new power prickling every pore of his skin. For the moment, he forgot about locating Nappa as he wondered if he was strong enough now to take Frieza on himself…

"Oh good, you're awake."

Vegeta's dark eyes shot up to Nappa who was walking in, carrying an extra dark blue battle uniform along with a set of brand new armor, gloves, and boots. On top of the pile was a brand new green scouter. The large Saiyan looked relieved as he walked over to his prince.

"I was just coming back to wake you up," Nappa said, extending the pile over to Vegeta. "It's been over a day, Vegeta. We need to move."

"Report," Vegeta ordered gruffly, taking the blue battle uniform and quickly starting to get dressed.

"Everyone's looking for us, but no one's tracked us here. Doesn't seem like they can track the space pods. We should be able to use them to go wherever we want," Nappa reported. Vegeta silently pulled on his white gloves, so Nappa continued, "Where are we going to go, Vegeta?"

Vegeta scowled but didn't respond. He turned to Nappa and took the new set of armor from him, tugging it down over his head. Finally, he took the brand new scouter out of Nappa's hands.

"Perhaps Planet Earth, where Raditz is," Vegeta answered, slipping on the scouter over his left ear. He looked up at Nappa and gave him an almost lopsided smile. "I didn't tell you earlier, Nappa. But I am damn glad you made it to Rithica when you did…thank you."

Nappa blinked in surprise, before feeling pride swell up in his chest. Such words were so extremely rare for the prince to say, that Nappa found that he actually couldn't remember the last time he'd ever heard Vegeta thank anyone. He couldn't even articulate how proud he was that finally, for once, he'd done right by his prince. Finally, he'd been strong enough to actually protect and save Vegeta. To have it actually acknowledged was a gift he hadn't anticipated and one he didn't take lightly.

"Just fulfilling my duty to you, my prince. Nothing to thank-"

Nappa was instantly silenced, doubling over in front of his prince, the same prince who had just viciously slammed his right fist through the stomach padding of his armor. Vegeta's arm was elbow deep inside Nappa's stomach, leaving the larger Saiyan sputtering with pain and deep betrayal. Vegeta's smile was long gone as he cocked his head to the side, observing his comrade with cold hatred and indifference.

"What a pity that even when the topic is my son, my own fucking _flesh and blood_ , your duty to your dead king is still more important than to your living prince," Vegeta sneered.

Nappa slurred through a mouthful of blood, "V-Ve-Vegeta-"

Vegeta smirked, licking his lips in amusement from Nappa's pain. "Tell my father that he now has his most loyal subject at his side again - compliments of his _loving son_ , Prince Vegeta."

With that, Vegeta fired a violent ki blast that sent Nappa flying back and crashing hard against the wall. He was dead before he hit the floor. Vegeta scowled and looked down at his upturned hands again, in the same position he was in before Nappa arrived.

"Hn," he grunted, clenching his fists tightly and completely unfazed over the fact that his right arm was soaked in Nappa's blood all the way up to his elbow. He was only concerned with how much power he now had as he once again wondered if it would be enough.

He then removed his scouter, frowning down at it thoughtfully. He glanced up at Nappa's body which was sitting up unnaturally against the wall. With a snort, Vegeta tossed the new scouter over his shoulder and strode over to his fallen man. Reaching down, he nonchalantly removed Nappa's blue scouter, putting it on over his own left ear instead. After all, why synchronize a new scouter when Nappa's was already synchronized?

As soon as he slipped the scouter on, lights were immediately activated. Vegeta quickly stepped over Nappa and poked his head out the door, glancing down the hallway each way. He cursed under his breath when his scouter told him there were several power levels approaching down the left end of the hallway. How the hell had they found him?

No matter; he had no time to dwell on that. He needed a plan and he needed it _now._ Thinking quickly, the prince looked over to the right, lifted his hand out, and fired a strong ki blast in that direction. The blast flew down the hallway and collided at the far end with stored explosives, resulting in a violent explosion. The smoke hit Vegeta less than a second later in a hot rush. Another second later and the smoke had filled the entire hallway, obscuring all vision. Vegeta hesitated a second, closing his eyes and focusing.

"What do you mean his power level dropped!" Zarbon yelled furiously at Cui as he ran up behind him. They both winced and lifted their hands up as a wave of smoke hit them, blinding their vision completely.

"I mean it! I had a read on him! It was at 20,000, but then it dropped down to nothing!" Cui yelled back, coughing from the smoke. "Maybe whatever that blast was killed him!"

Vegeta heard them both with his sensitive hearing. He opened his eyes and smirked in their direction, before taking off running to the right, using the smoke for cover. He moved as fast as he could, dodging random equipment littering the hallway while he heard their footsteps behind him. Growling, Vegeta spun back around and fired a slew of blasts their way. He heard Cui yell out in pain and that was good enough for him. He turned around and saw that he'd reached the end of the base. The space pods were so close now. Using his momentum, he lowered his shoulder like a linebacker and barreled through the wall completely. The light outside was bright and stung his eyes for a bit, but then the space pod landing came into view.

 _Freedom_. The word was so real he could practically taste it. Without hesitating, he charged over to the nearest space pod.

He took all of two steps before he was viciously knocked flat on his back. His ears were suddenly ringing, his vision exploding with bright colors, his body feeling like it had just gone through the ringer. With a low groan, he groggily rolled over, struggling to get back up to his feet.

"You're good, Vegeta. I give you that," a familiar voice said. Vegeta blinked and shook his head, recognizing the voice but not able to place it. He slowly got up to his hands and knees as blood suddenly ran into his eyes. Dazed, he tried to stand, but he fell back to his knees. He growled in frustration and a hint of confusion. What the hell had struck him without him even noticing? He couldn't think straight at all.

"But when you got abilities like ours, everyone else always comes in last."

He looked up, squinting, only to see a deadly group of five suddenly standing in front of his only means of escape. A short, round, four-eyed alien waved at him.

"Nothing like a little time suspension to dish out a good beating, eh, Vegeta?" Guldo laughed. "One second you think you're gonna win, and then the next, you can't even remember your own name."

"Got the whole damn army looking for ya, mate," Jeice snickered. "Lord Frieza ain't gonna be happy, I'll tell ya that."

 _The Ginyu Force. Goddamn it,_ Vegeta cursed, his heart sinking down into his stomach at the sight of them. He glared at them with disdain in his gaze as he slowly forced himself back up to his feet.

"What's the matter? Can't fight me when I can actually see your attacks coming?" Vegeta sneered bitterly, finally standing even though he staggered back a little.

"Why should we all get our hands dirty?" Captain Ginyu asked with a smirk. "Really, only Guldo was necessary to ensure that no one left this planet. But we couldn't help wanting to see you one last time, Vegeta. We just like you so much, we had to say our goodbyes before Lord Frieza finishes you once and for all."

"He sure is pissed too," Recoome added with a deep laugh. "I don't know what you did but you really riled him up."

"He's not the only one who's pissed," Zarbon growled, stepping out through the hole Vegeta made in the wall, Cui on his trail. Vegeta did a quarter turn, not giving anyone his back. He backed up a bit, his eyes going from the Ginyu Force to Zarbon, then over to the space pods. Zarbon saw his line of sight and snorted. "Don't even try it. You are coming back with me whether you want to or not."

Vegeta snarled venomously at him, baring his teeth and stating his case without words. Zarbon sighed dramatically, before turning to Cui.

"Go collect the dead Saiyan in the medical room. We'll bring him with us to appease Lord Frieza." Cui nodded and ran back inside the base as Zarbon turned to Vegeta. "Now, do you have any other friends hiding here?"

"I don't answer to you or anybody else. Not anymore," Vegeta hissed at him, raising one forearm and wiping the blood from his eyes impatiently.

Zarbon chuckled, before slowing beginning to remove the sleeves on his arms, preparing for a fight. "Well, Vegeta," he smoothly said, "We'll just see about that."

Vegeta shifted back in a fight stance, eyeing the Ginyu Force warily out of the corner of his eye.

"Don't worry. We won't get involved. We only dropped by on Zarbon's request," Captain Ginyu assured him with a smirk.

Vegeta sneered hatefully at him, before turning his attention fully to Zarbon. Zarbon looked Vegeta over for a few seconds, before chuckling again. He flicked his braided hair back, his earlier anxiety completely gone. Even if he couldn't find the other two Saiyans, he knew he'd be off the hook just by bringing in the Saiyan that was standing in front of him. With that knowledge, his cocky swagger was back in full swing.

"Vegeta, you really are a fool," Zarbon mused, shaking his head in disappointment. "You should give up. It would be so much easier for you."

"Never," Vegeta growled.

Zarbon smiled, as if hoping that was the response he'd get. "So be it."

That was all the warning Vegeta got before Zarbon charged right at him.

Unfortunately, there were five others who charged Vegeta right at the same time.

Vegeta was on the ground faster than he ever thought possible, taking an old-fashioned beating as everyone got their hits in. He thought he heard someone laughing that they just had to do it for old time's sake, but he couldn't be quite sure. He tried to retaliate when and where he could, even managing at one point to get back up to his feet. But he was outnumbered six-to-one and he was severely outmatched. After someone's boot connected hard with his temple, he was left completely dazed and out of it. He stopped trying to fight back and could only make vain and feeble attempts to protect himself from the vicious assault as they brutally battered him.

Finally, it mercifully ended. Vegeta was left facedown, motionless and cradling his head on the ground, lying in his own blood. He could only hear bits and pieces of what was said, the voices fading in and out…

"…wants him alive…"

"…kill this monkey…"

"…two more left…"

"…treason…"

The voices finally faded out altogether, until he was roughly kicked in his ribs. Vegeta hissed and rolled onto his back, his arms still cradling his head. Everything felt like it was spinning, making him severely nauseous. A few seconds later, someone grabbed him by the collar of his armor and started dragging him away to his sure death. He moaned weakly, unable to even open his eyes, much less put up any kind of resistance.

Quite suddenly, his thoughts turned to his son, Trunks. The kid was a tough bastard. Maybe he would avenge him someday. The prince managed a weak and bloodied smile at the thought before he finally passed out from the beating he took.

He had no idea just how soon that _someday_ would turn out to be.


	12. What Goes Around

The planet was beautiful. He admired it for a moment, cocking his head to one side, awed by the colors reflecting in its atmosphere. The planet was red, with a brilliant radiance of blue surrounding it, marking the layers of its atmosphere. Yes, such a wondrous radiance could only mean one thing:

The planet exploding would cause such delightful fireworks.

With a dark and evil smirk, Frieza fired a lethal blast that spiraled down towards the red planet. Frieza's smirk spread into a grin when the planet exploded before him, a display of red and blue lights as the once beautiful planet was reduced to atoms. He licked his lips in amusement; it was just as wonderful as he thought it would be.

Suddenly, his red scouter lit up with a dual transmission. Frieza sighed. His fun was always interrupted.

"Yes, Father?" Frieza asked, sounding almost bored as he turned around and headed back into his flagship.

"Frieza," King Cold greeted. "Your brother and I are waiting for you."

"Right. Just can't _wait_ to see you, brother," Cooler added, sarcasm dripping off every syllable.

Frieza rolled his eyes in annoyance. It was that time again. Every six weeks, the Colds held what they affectionately called "The Trials." Soldiers who committed grave crimes against the Cold Empire were sent there to be "tried" by King Cold and his sons, with his fellow soldiers as his jury (so they said; it was actually a glorified, humiliating, and barbaric display of public executions, reserved for soldiers who really pissed off Cooler or Frieza). It always wound up being King Cold and just _one_ of his sons. The brothers could barely stand to be in the same galaxy, much less in such close quarters with each other. They had a silent understanding that they alternated their appearances, and this time, it was Cooler's turn to make his appearance. Frieza deduced that his father was truly a stupid bastard not to see their routine. He _always_ got this stupid transmission when it was his time to sit out, and he _always_ gave the same answer, which he readily gave now.

"I can't go this time, Father. I have a few planets that I need to tame. I will, however, be watching the live projection when I can, and I will send Zarbon to represent me."

"That's a shame, son," King Cold said, snickering a little. "Well, do what must be done. If you have time, please try to stop by. The Trials are being held on Planet Ri'noj in Cooler's quadrant this time."

"Of course, Father," Frieza said with feigned politeness, before seeing one transmission disappear. He frowned at the one that remained. There was silence for a few minutes, before Cooler's voice came through.

"So, brother - how goes your _investigation_?" Cooler asked mockingly.

"I'm still working on it."

"Good. I can't wait to hear what you find," Cooler sneered.

Frieza chuckled. "Well, my dear brother - you just wait and see," he smoothly said, before reaching up and turning off the communications on his scouter altogether.

Turning around, Frieza's face darkened a little as he headed towards the dungeons of his ship. He could have easily thrown Vegeta into The Trials, which would have guaranteed his death. However, Frieza only sent his soldiers when _he_ was present, so that _he_ could be the one to humiliate and kill them. The thought of his father or his older brother punishing Vegeta repulsed Frieza. His little Saiyan pet was _his_ , and his alone. Only he was allowed to punish him.

And that's exactly what he was going to do.

* * *

"Where are they?"

Behind him, Vegeta could hear the whip in Zarbon's hand. The snaps and crackles of the fire burning down the loose, thick wires promised familiar misery, a song and dance of pain that he had experienced so many times that he'd lost count back when he was a teenager. Mixed in with the fire, he could hear a lethal buzzing sound. _That_ was the sound that was really making him sweat. It meant that some of the wires weren't on fire, but were charged with live and deadly electricity.

The fire, he was used to. The electricity, not so much. When wielded with enough force, the electric wires ripped his skin so severely that his body was unable to fully heal the wounds, tattooing him permanently with scars to complement those he got in battle. His ki also reacted badly when the raw electricity mixed with his blood, zapping his strength and always leaving him feeling sick and weak for days afterwards.

Sweat ran down Vegeta's face and into his eyes. He squeezed them shut.

"I asked you a question, monkey prince," Zarbon whispered dangerously right behind Vegeta's ear. "Where is that half-breed boy, and where is Raditz?"

"Never heard of them."

The punishment for his response was immediate. The fire and electricity both shredded the sweaty flesh of the Saiyan's bare back, burning the skin raw. Vegeta hissed through clenched teeth, his knees buckling involuntarily from the pain as he shifted his weight to the wrist guards clamped together over his head.

As soon as he did, the wrist guards automatically tightened, making the shards of metal on the inside rip into the already badly damaged skin of his wrists. Vegeta bit his bottom lip hard to keep from verbally expressing his pain. The wrist guards were producing a relentless stream of blood that had both of his arms and his shoulders completely soaked in crimson, the blood trickling down his chest and his back. He was restrained just low enough for him to stand, a feat that was becoming more and more difficult the longer the torture went on.

Grinding his teeth together, the prince forced himself to shift his weight back to his feet and alleviate the pain in his wrists. The blood loss was making him weaker and more light-headed by the minute.

"Care to change your answer?" Zarbon asked with clear amusement in his voice.

Vegeta spit on the floor, before falling into a stubborn silence.

"Well? Are you going to tell me what I want to know, or do I have to beat it out of you?"

Vegeta snorted in morbid amusement, turning his head and cocking a sarcastic eyebrow. "What was the question again? I forgot."

Zarbon rained deadly hell on him, thrashing him mercilessly and making Vegeta feel like he was being burned alive. The prince lost the strength to stand and let the wrist guards hold him up completely, even though it felt like his hands were about to be severed off any second now. The electricity was searing through his blood and into his veins, making his ki protest violently. He hung his head when it was over, his eyes squeezed shut, his breathing harsh and pained. He felt like vomiting.

"You think you're cute with your smart mouth," Zarbon snarled, coming around to face him. The wires hanging down from the whip in his hand were dancing and snapping, lighting up the dungeon cell with flickering, dangerous orange and blue lights. He grabbed Vegeta by the jaw and roughly jerked his head up. Vegeta opened his eyes with difficulty as Zarbon sneered in his face, "But we'll see just how much you mouth off when Lord Frieza deals with you."

"I'm not afraid of that freak," Vegeta growled, his voice garbled from Zarbon's grip. He sounded extremely convincing, considering that he was lying. Hell, part of him was purposely prolonging this torture with Zarbon just to avoid the confrontation with the tyrant.

"You _should_ be afraid. He's not happy with you, Vegeta. Might finally put you out of your misery. About bloody time, I say," Zarbon said with a snort, shoving Vegeta's face roughly to the side. "He's spared you too many times in my opinion."

Unable to stand the pain in his wrists any longer, Vegeta once again shifted his weight back to his feet, forcing his knees to hold up by sheer strength of will. He glared at Zarbon, defiance and pure hatred in his dark eyes.

"Well, what can I tell you, Zarbon? I'm just so goddamn likeable," he sneered.

The prince barely had enough time to turn his face away before Zarbon violently thrashed him again, this time letting the deadly wires rip his flesh from the front. Vegeta rocked back on his heels, the force from the impact alone enough to knock him off his feet had it not been for the wrist guards. He could feel electricity burning down the side of his face, arms, and chest, slicing his skin open mercilessly.

He grit his teeth together so hard his jaw ached, panting through his nose. Zarbon was pulling back again when a voice sounded from behind him.

"That's quite enough, Zarbon. I know you're having fun, but do try to contain yourself."

Zarbon looked over his shoulder in surprise before moving out of the way as Frieza casually strolled in, as though this were an everyday scene. Vegeta looked up through one eye, his pain briefly forgotten. His judge, jury, and executioner had finally arrived. He released a shaky breath, cold fear trickling down his spine for the first time in a long time as his fate became all too real with Frieza's arrival.

Frieza looked Vegeta over, taking in the Saiyan's weak and bloodied form, before nodding in approval. "Quite the job you've done here, Zarbon. Well done."

Zarbon smirked with pride. "Thank you, Lord Frieza."

"Did you get him to talk?"

"No. Not yet."

"I see," Frieza said with an amused chuckle. "That's alright. The remaining two are of no concern. Well, Zarbon, I would like a word with my favorite monkey alone. You have other business to tend to anyways. You know what today is."

"The Trials," Zarbon affirmed. Oh, he definitely knew the day. Over half of Frieza's army usually attended, and it was through no coercion on Frieza's part. There were fights, and they were always brutal and always to the death. They appealed to everyone's bloodlust like an arena of gladiators. Zarbon had seen hundreds, and it was a great show - as long as you weren't among those being "tried", anyways.

"Indeed. I suggest you go and start preparing for your attendance, so you can represent me."

"Yes, Lord Frieza."

Vegeta forced himself to stand when he heard Zarbon leave, trying his best to look calm and fearless. It was to no avail; his muscles were all twitching involuntarily from his now overwhelming physical and emotional stress as he felt Frieza approaching him. Frieza casually put his hands behind his back and grasped them together, slowly circling him as he studied the Saiyan's injuries closely. Vegeta swallowed under his scrutiny, his body tense as he broke out into a cold sweat.

He flinched when he felt Frieza's cold finger on his arm, swiping across his skin. The tyrant lifted his finger up and licked Vegeta's blood off it, considering the taste with an air of dignity like he was wine-tasting.

"I must say. Tears are deliciously salty, but nothing compares to the wonderful mix of blood and sweat. Quite delectable. Wouldn't you agree?"

Vegeta remained silent, his stomach churning.

"You know what I _don't_ like, though, my pet monkey?" Frieza asked nonchalantly, trailing one finger down one of the few undamaged patches of skin on Vegeta's back. Vegeta flinched again and growled low in his throat in warning, but the tyrant continued on, "I don't like that all the signs are pointing to you committing treason. It hurts me, Vegeta. It really does. I care so much about you, and this is how I am repaid…"

Vegeta's legs spasmed with pain as Frieza slowly dug his fingernail into an open and ripped cut in his back. The prince's knees buckled and he couldn't help the pained groan that escaped him as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"I took you in as a child. I showed you such wonderful hospitality. I taught you how to fight. Honestly. You're like a son to me."

"I am not your son," Vegeta hissed through his teeth, his face red as he panted through his nose.

"You might as well be. It's not like your parents wanted you. Your father handed you over with no problems at all. Couldn't get rid of you fast enough. It was sad, really. You were so young, I just _had_ to take you in. Oh, don't be upset, Vegeta," Frieza snickered, observing the prince with sinister and cold eyes. Vegeta was shaking so badly from both his rage and his pain, he couldn't form a single word. "I still care about you. In fact, I care about you _so_ much, that I am willing to make a deal with you."

He finally pulled his finger back, and Vegeta gasped in relief. Frieza smirked in amusement and clasped his hands behind him, circling the Saiyan again, his tail methodically waving behind him.

"You see, Vegeta. You put me in a bit of a hard situation. Rithica was in the north-east quadrant of the north sector. That's Cooler's quadrant."

Vegeta's face paled, realization dawning on him. Frieza stood in front of him now, his eyes narrowed and dangerous.

"What were your orders?"

Vegeta hesitated a second too long. The violent blow that struck his chest was too fast for him to see, and it shattered almost the entire left side of his ribcage on impact. He cried out in pain, the strength in his knees vanishing. Fresh and hot blood ran down his arms. Darkness tinted his vision for a second.

"What were your _orders,_ Vegeta?"

"Purge Rithica and Liyana," Vegeta answered, his words slurred through a mouth filled with blood.

"And you disobeyed both. Now I have to deal with my brother. You know how much I just _love_ doing that," Frieza sneered. He sighed as he regarded the Saiyan in front of him who was now struggling to breathe. "But, as I said. I will make a deal with you. You prove your allegiance and your loyalty to me, and I won't tell Cooler that it was you who destroyed Rithica."

"I didn't destroy the goddamned planet," Vegeta wheezed, blinking wearily. He felt dizzy.

Frieza tilted his head. "Oh? Then who did?"

"The Tuffles were hiding there."

Frieza's eyes darkened at Vegeta's words. His men's enemies were hiding on a planet that belonged to his brother? How fucking convenient. He doubted it was coincidence either. Briefly, he wondered if the Tuffles were working for Cooler all along.

It was a thought. Frieza put it on the backburner, mentally cataloguing this information for later scrutiny. After all, a few twists here and there in his favor, and he could even spin this information on his brother. It would provide him the rationale needed to kill Cooler once and for all.

"I engaged them," Vegeta continued, "They-"

"You _engaged_ them?" Frieza interrupted.

"I destroyed them," Vegeta corrected himself. "But they-" he broke out coughing harshly, hacking up more blood. His eyes briefly glazed over, before he stubbornly shook it off as he continued, "They planted explosives and blew up the planet. Wasn't me."

"Mmm, a likely story. I'd be inclined to believe it, if it wasn't for your extended absence. What is your explanation for that?"

Vegeta's skin crawled. Telling the truth was sure to sentence him to death. But what kind of lie could he give? He tried hard to come up with a lie. He'd lied to save his skin so many times before, but his mind was drawing an alarming blank.

"Really, Vegeta. It's a simple question. Just tell me what I want to know, prove your allegiance to me, and your sins and failures will be forgiven. You'll be healing in a rejuvenation chamber before you know it. I promise."

Vegeta felt some of his inner strength die. It was a blatant lie, and he knew it. How many empty promises of mercy had he himself made to his victims, knowing all the while that he was going to slaughter them regardless? Part of him couldn't help but wonder if they felt the same way he was feeling now. So utterly helpless.

"That's bullshit, and we both know it. You're here to kill me. So just get on with it and do it already, Frieza," he grumbled, his voice weary.

Frieza looked appalled. "My dear, precious monkey! Weren't you listening when I told you that I care for you like you were my son? How many times have I forgiven you in the past?" he asked. Vegeta gave him a wary look. "Just answer the question. I give you my word that I won't kill you, if you just answer my question."

Vegeta looked away, remaining stubbornly silent. Frieza chuckled, before nodding.

"Very well. As a token of my good faith, to show you how willing I am to forgive, I will just assume that you got… _lost_ …for a little while on your way to Rithica. See how much I care about you, Vegeta? Sparing your life again and again. Why, I've been sparing your life going back to when I destroyed your filthy monkey race by blowing up your planet."

Vegeta's eyes immediately shot back to him. At the look on his face, Frieza laughed at him. "Yes, it's true. It was me. Surprised?"

He'd always suspected, but never had it confirmed until now. Overwhelming loss suddenly fell on Vegeta's shoulders, the weight of failure bearing down on him with the truth laid out in such clarity. He could hear the whispers of millions of his people in his ear, all disgusted with him for being so weak. Destined savior, destined Super Saiyan, Saiyan Elite, Saiyan Prince. Nothing but false titles he didn't deserve. His deep shame crippled him and he lost what little strength he had left, letting his eyes drift closed.

Frieza smiled a cruel smile. The prince was cracking. Just a little more, and he'd be broken completely.

"Now, pay attention, because this is your last chance at redemption, my pet. You know the words. Say them and all will be forgiven."

He didn't flinch this time when Frieza's cold fingers settled around his jaw. Unlike Zarbon, Frieza's touch was almost gentle as he raised Vegeta's head so they were eye-level. Vegeta swallowed heavily. His glazed over eyes fluttered open briefly, before rolling back, his body desperately craving rest.

"Oh, come now, Vegeta," Frieza chuckled, shaking Vegeta's head and forcing the prince to stay conscious, "Stay with me. You're _so close_ _!_ Just say the words."

Vegeta squeezed his eyes shut. He fell into a stubborn silence, though he was giving serious thought to just giving in. His pride was screaming at him though. It was better to die a free man, than continue living like he was, it was saying. He was a prince, not a slave. His life as it stood before him was a fucking disgrace, as it had always been. How could he go back to it?

"I know you're in pain and so your memory might not be clear, so let me give you the words to say: I swear my allegiance to you, Lord Frieza, to your Galactic Army, and to the Cold family, in that order, and I would readily die in your name," the tyrant prompted. The hair on Vegeta's tail rose and bristled, before he tightened it around his waist. Frieza tilted his head a little, smirking a sinister smirk as he painfully tightened his grip on the Saiyan's jaw. "Say it."

Vegeta made up his mind and forced his eyes open. He stubbornly blinked his haze away, his eyes slowly refocusing before settling on Frieza's triumphant gaze. He opened his mouth to speak, but never got the chance.

Zarbon suddenly walked in, looking slightly pale. Frieza rolled his eyes and sighed in annoyance, releasing his grip on Vegeta's jaw. He slowly turned around to face Zarbon directly.

"Zarbon, what have I told you about interrupting me when I'm busy in here?" Frieza asked calmly, clasping his hands behind him, his tail waving impatiently.

"Lord Frieza, my apologies, but I, well…" Zarbon said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Out with it. Do not try my patience," Frieza hissed, his tail whipping behind him now.

Zarbon took off his blue scouter and extended it to Frieza. "You need to take this transmission, sir."

The tyrant gave him a suspicious look, before lowering his gaze to the scouter. Finally, he reached out and took it with a sigh.

"This had better be good, Zarbon, or you'll be in Vegeta's place next," he warned in a cold voice, removing his red scouter and handing it to Zarbon, who nodded numbly. Frieza then turned away from him and looked at the coordinates on the blue scouter, recognizing whose scouter they belonged to.

"What is it, Dodoria?" Frieza asked, sounding almost bored.

"Oh, you mean that pink, spiked freak?" a smooth voice responded. "Sorry to disappoint, but well. He's kind of dead."

Frieza's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I find _that_ hard to believe," he said, keeping his voice cool and collected. He snapped his fingers at Zarbon, mouthing for him to get location coordinates immediately. Zarbon nodded and turned around, heading out in quick strides, his cape waving behind him.

There was a dark chuckle. "Believe what you want to."

"Who is this?"

"Why don't you come find out?" Trunks asked, surveying the white stone buildings in front of him - or what was left of them. He had single-handedly demolished the entire military base of Frieza's base planet. The previously proud structure was now in shambles, and there was a huge cloud of dark smoke rising from the fire of his vicious ki blasts.

The teenager knew where Frieza was, but the problem was that space pods just couldn't fly to Frieza's ship. Frieza chose which pods were allowed to dock on his flag ship. As such, there was no verbal command Trunks could give to get to his father. He was stuck, and in his frustration, he had leveled the entire place in a manner that was dangerously close to a purge. He didn't even realize it, focused on what he could do to get to his father. Finally, he'd decided on a little baiting, hoping he could convince Frieza to let him reach his flagship; or, even better, that he could convince Frieza to show up where he was.

Frieza chuckled in amusement. "I see. So that's how we're going to play."

Trunks smirked, lifting his sword and surveying the blood on it nonchalantly. "You know, Frieza. I think I just took out about a quarter of your army. I wasn't really impressed."

"Mmm, yes, well, that's because my finest are attending a special event at the moment," Frieza replied calmly, right as Zarbon walked back in. Frieza's eyes sharpened on him, and Zarbon just shook his head with a bleak expression on his face.

"The communications are all down. No one's scouters are active except Dodoria's," he said in a quiet voice. "Planetary surveillance says everything's been destroyed."

Frieza stiffened at that, his eyes darkening as he realized that this was more than just someone deciding to be cute and act tough. He turned to face away from both Zarbon and Vegeta, before crossing his arms over his chest.

"You have my undivided attention," Frieza finally said, his calm voice sounding almost polite, even though his eyes were murderous. "What do you want?"

"I want Vegeta."

Frieza frowned and glanced over at the prince out of the corner of his eye. Frieza never had any intentions of sparing Vegeta's life - he just wanted the prince to beg for mercy, so he could see the look on his face when he killed him anyways. The tyrant exhaled slowly as he observed the Saiyan for a few more seconds, tempted to just send a beam through his heart right now. To hell with his fun execution. His monkey prince was becoming more trouble than he was worth.

"Well, I do sincerely hate to disappoint, but Vegeta belongs to me. I'll be happy to hand his dead body over to you once I'm done, though. Corpses always leave such a filthy odor."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Because if you kill him, I will bring a hell into your life the likes of which you have never seen."

Frieza blinked in surprise, stunned at the words. Finally, after a few seconds, he burst out into loud, maniacal laughter. "You think just because you defeated some of my weak, low ranked soldiers that you can make threats like-"

"Do you know what a Super Saiyan is, Frieza?"

Frieza's laughter immediately died. At once, he knew who he was speaking to. After all, Vegeta was with him, and Nappa was dead. The only other options that were left were Raditz and the half-breed boy. The same half-breed boy who had somehow been hiding his power when Vegeta first brought the boy before him. For the first time that Frieza could remember, unease squirmed its way into his guts.

"Monkey folklore. There is no such thing."

"Well why don't you come back to your base planet, or let me go to your ship? I'll be more than happy to give you a _monkey_ re-education."

"Now, now. There is no need for such hostility. I am sure we can come up with an agreement. No blood needs to be shed. If you want Vegeta, you can have him - after I'm done with him. How does that sound?"

"I want him _alive_ , Frieza," Trunks hissed.

"Of course, my dear boy. Of course," Frieza said, his tail starting to wave behind him. He smirked a sinister smirk when a plan dawned on him. Looking back at the Saiyan prince, Frieza decided that Vegeta might still be useful to him yet. "He's here with me now, and he's still alive. I'll tell you what. Let me just wrap up with him, and then I'll tell you where you can go to retrieve him. What do you say?"

"That sounds good…in theory. How will I know that he'll be where you tell me he is? And how will I know that he'll be alive?"

"Don't you trust me?"

"No," Trunks said bluntly.

"Mmm, yes, Vegeta's taught you a thing or two. But not everyone is a liar like my sweet little monkey prince. If I tell you where Vegeta will be, then Vegeta will be there. What do you think? Will you come out and play?"

Trunks ran a hand over his mouth, his mind and heart both racing. He had little leverage, and he begrudgingly admitted to himself that he would simply have to take Frieza's word for it, and pray with all his heart that Vegeta would be there and be alive.

"Where will he be?" he finally asked, his voice neutral and guarded.

"Planet Ri'noj. I look forward to seeing you there."

Frieza reached up and ended the transmission, before removing the scouter and tossing it back to Zarbon. He then turned and walked back over to Vegeta, who was struggling to breathe. At the look of brilliant rage on the tyrant's face, the blood drained from Vegeta's face. He opened his mouth to speak.

"Wait-"

He was silenced by a rain of blows that cascaded down upon him with a fury unmatched in the existence of the universe. Thousands of beatings he'd taken in his life, but none had ever been as relentless or vicious as the one the tyrant was currently unloading on him. Vegeta could barely gasp for air, the blood flying out of his nose and his mouth as Frieza brutally and mercilessly laid into him. After one particularly nasty shot to his face, his wrist guards were jarred free from their chains on the ceiling. Vegeta never got the chance to fall before Frieza had him suspended again, his tail wrapped tightly around the Saiyan's neck to hold him up as he continued his battering without missing a beat. Vegeta's bones were being shattered, each blow more agonizing than the last, jarring him and denying him the unconsciousness that he craved to escape the mind-numbing pain he was in. Even Zarbon had to actually look away.

Frieza's tail finally released Vegeta, who collapsed immediately, hoarse as he desperately gasped for air. The prince slowly rolled over to his side, his body shaking as he hacked up blood from the vicious beating. He finally rested his head on the cool ground, exhausted, defeated, and completely demoralized when it sank in that the tyrant _wasn't even trying_.

Frieza observed his hands, before raising one knuckle up to his mouth. He licked Vegeta's blood off, before gazing down at the broken Saiyan laid out at his feet.

"You are more trouble than you're fucking worth, Saiyan," Frieza snarled venomously. "I was going to put you out of your misery. But, it seems that you can still fulfill one last assignment for me. You're going to help me see just how serious, or just how much of a joke, this new _threat_ is." He tilted his head a little, before smirking cruelly. "You shouldn't live too long after what I just did to you, so don't worry. Your pain will end in due time. Now, before I send you away, there's just one last thing. The tail, Vegeta. The tail has simply _got_ to go."

He suddenly grabbed Vegeta's tail and jerked it hard, hauling the prince over to him and forcing Vegeta to roll onto his stomach. Vegeta suddenly realized what Frieza said, and he panicked. He tried to get away, but that quickly stopped when Frieza brutally slammed his foot down on his lower back, pinning him down.

Vegeta grappled valiantly with his pride, but when he felt Frieza forcefully pulling on his tail while twirling it, he finally broke.

"Don't. Please," he pleaded, his voice raw with desperation. His eyes squeezed shut in shame over the fact that he was practically begging, but his tail was all he had left. It was one thing to lose it in battle, it was quite another to have the destroyer of his people strip him of the very thing that made him Saiyan. He couldn't handle it. He couldn't. His whole body was shaking at the prospect of having Frieza do this to him.

Frieza chuckled. He'd been enraged by having his hand forced by some Saiyan half-breed, but the beating he dished out on Vegeta was wonderful therapy. Now, having the prince at his feet and actually asking for mercy, it was delicious music to his ears. "This tail has brought you much more agony than anything. Letting you transform into such a disgusting creature. Drawing attention from ancient enemies of your people, old feuds you had nothing to do with. This tail is both a burden and a bulls-eye. My dear little monkey, can't you see? I care about you so much, that I simply have no choice."

Before the prince could get a sound out, Frieza sliced his tail off with one well-aimed beam, leaving only a small nub. A jolt of pain seared Vegeta from head to toe. Frieza smirked and raised the tail up, observing it curiously.

" _Filthy_ monkey appendage. Honestly! I should have done this long ago." He threw it aside in disgust, and removed his foot from Vegeta's back. He kicked Vegeta hard in the ribs, forcing him to roll onto his back. Frieza regarded him curiously, before smiling at him. "Hmm. Maybe I _should_ just put you out of your misery, my dear prince…"

Vegeta's eyes were swimming with hot tears as he peered up to see Frieza standing over him. He'd lost his freedom, his home, and now, his precious tail. Everything that mattered to him was now gone, all at the hands of the alien standing over him triumphantly. He had failed, and was going to die having lived out a completely worthless existence. He had achieved nothing. No vengeance, no retribution, no legacy. Nothing to look back on with pride. Nothing but his painful, humiliating death, a death he could feel was slowly but surely coming with the extent of his injuries.

A death he completely deserved, he suddenly realized.

"Just do it then," he finally said, giving up as his pride shattered like glass.

Frieza laughed in delight. "Goodness. What would your father say if he saw you now? He'd probably disown you - _again_." When Vegeta stayed silent, Frieza sighed in disappointment that he couldn't bait the Saiyan. "Oh, you're just no fun, Vegeta! I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to make you useful for the little time you have left. Zarbon?"

"Yes, Lord Frieza."

"My scouter." Zarbon headed over and handed the tyrant his red scouter back. Frieza slipped it on while he continued, "Get Vegeta dressed in his armor, and take him with you to The Trials. Quickly, Zarbon. I don't want to keep my father and my brother waiting."

Frieza casually strolled out of the dungeon cell. He reached up and activated his scouter, before seeking the transmission he wanted to make. After a few seconds, the transmission was picked up with a beep.

"What do you want, runt?" Cooler's peeved voice came through. "You're interrupting my entertainment."

Frieza chuckled. " _Well!_ How rude. I just wanted you to know that my investigation was a success. I've found the man responsible for the demise of your planet, Rithica. He's already confessed to his treason, and now he must be tried."

"Oh, really?" his brother asked, his tone slightly disbelieving. "And who was it?"

"Vegeta."

"Vegeta?" Cooler asked, unable to keep the surprise out of his voice.

"Indeed. You know his rebellious nature. I've tried correcting it, but I've grown tired of it now. Do you want him or not, brother? I have no qualms taking care of him myself…"

"No. I want him," Cooler asserted, anger in his voice now. He'd always hated Vegeta since he was a child. The Saiyan's temper, murderous violence, and sanity had worsened with time, but he was born with his smart mouth. It had burned Cooler alive when Vegeta, as a child, had mouthed off to him that at least he wasn't forced to serve the worthless Cold son. Cooler wasn't as strong as his brother, but outside of his family, he was the strongest being in the universe and could have crushed Vegeta like a gnat. However, it was strictly against the rules for him to kill one of Frieza's soldiers and vice-versa. Plus, Frieza always protected Vegeta under the logic that the Saiyan would suffer only if he wanted him to.

Needless to say, having Frieza now gift-wrap Vegeta to him made Cooler's mouth practically water with bloodthirsty anticipation. "Send him immediately."

"I am. Zarbon will bring him shortly."

"I'll be waiting then."

Cooler ended the transmission, and a dark smirk spread over Frieza's features as he smoothly headed upstairs to the main floor of his ship. His stride never broke until he finally got to his main office. He walked in and his levitating seat came over to him. Calmly, Frieza took a seat, before going over to the near wall. He pressed a few buttons on his levitating seat, and a live holographic projection appeared before him of The Trials being held by his father and his brother. With a satisfied smile, he leaned back in his seat and snapped his fingers. A few seconds later, a servant came in with a glass of wine. Frieza took it without moving his eyes from the projection, not even aware that he still had a good deal of Vegeta's blood on his hands.

Normally, Frieza wouldn't have hesitated in killing off Vegeta and then sending for the boy to come to his ship to meet his death as well. It was the mention of the Super Saiyan state, however, that made Frieza hesitate. He saw no harm in "volunteering" his brother and his father as experiments to see just what he was up against.

_After all… what else is family good for?_ Frieza thought to himself with a smirk, before casually raising his wine glass for a drink.

* * *

The scene in front of Trunks was unlike any he'd ever seen in his life.

The teenager was laying on his stomach on a high ridge, out of sight. Down below was something that looked like a makeshift arena. There were _thousands_ of soldiers gathered, all standing around a large square patch of sand that was dark with different shades of spilled blood. There were two soldiers currently engaged in a fierce battle on that square, but even from where Trunks was, he could see that one of them was severely outmatched. The crowd roared its delight when the weaker warrior finally had his legs blown right off with a vicious ki blast.

At the very front of the action were three thrones, and behind them was an enormous spaceship. Only two of the three thrones were currently occupied. One of the occupants slowly rose up and strolled over to the fallen man. He was smooth and sleek in his movements, his dark purple tail waving behind him casually. Trunks couldn't hear what was being said, but from the soldier's motion, he was clearly begging for mercy. It wasn't granted; Cooler nonchalantly placed his foot on his skull, and Trunks looked away so he wouldn't see the inevitable as the crowd roared its bloodthirsty approval. Trunks swallowed, finally convinced that Frieza hadn't lied to him. If the tyrant hadn't killed off his father, then subjecting Vegeta to the barbaric display in front of him seemed right up Frieza's alley.

Closing his eyes in concentration, the teenager tried sensing his father's signature ki to no avail. There were simply too many warriors gathered. He took a deep breath and pulled away to climb down into the mayhem.

He was just going to have to find his father the old-fashioned way.

Meanwhile, Vegeta was sitting with his back against a wall, in yet another dark and dingy dungeon - this time in King Cold's flagship. He'd been dressed in modified and supposedly improved armor that didn't give him the shoulder, hip, and crotch guards he was used to wearing. His battle uniform was black to hide the alarming amount of blood seeping through it, though his white gloves had quickly stained crimson red from his damaged wrists that were still bleeding. He swallowed when he heard the roar of the crowd outside. He himself had attended The Trials so many times, he'd lost track.

Now he was on the other side though, and it broke his already shattered pride into even more pieces. He was going to be forced to fight, but he could barely rouse the strength to even raise his head. Everyone would see him fall in battle and think he was weak, knowing nothing about his condition that was crippling him with every breath he took. Briefly, he contemplated stripping out of his armor to show King Cold and Cooler that he was a waste of their _entertainment_. Cooler wasn't as strong as Frieza, but he had a no-bullshit attitude that Vegeta respected. If he wanted you dead, he killed you on the spot. No slow, sadistic mind-games like Frieza liked to play. Just a fast and ruthless execution. Vegeta knew that Cooler would put him down like the wounded animal he was if he revealed the true severity of his injuries.

He sighed a wet and shaky sigh, his lungs burning with the simple act. For the first time in his entire life, Vegeta cursed his Saiyan blood. His Saiyan genes were working relentlessly to heal him, but all it was doing was slowing down the inevitable. He just wanted it to end already. He wanted peace, for once in his life. Peace and quiet. The kind of peace and quiet that only comes with death.

He was slipping in and out of consciousness when a rough hand came down and grasped his armor. Before Vegeta could even process that he wasn't alone anymore, Zarbon already had him hauled up to his feet, single-handedly holding him up.

"Let's go, monkey prince," Zarbon chuckled, using both hands as he forced Vegeta to walk, "It's time for you to get yours."

Meanwhile, Trunks was weaving in and out of the crowd of cheering soldiers. He drew some strange looks for his lack of armor, but he still had Dodoria's scouter on, even though he had wisely deactivated it. It was just enough to make people shrug him off as an idiot instead of a threat, which is what he was counting on. Trunks was trying his best to spot his father, but it was incredibly hard. He ignored the sudden roar that ripped through the crowd, until he heard King Cold's booming voice slicing through the night.

"Vegeta, third rank soldier in Frieza's Galactic Army, accused of treason. The gravest of crimes," King Cold announced with a malicious grin as Zarbon dragged Vegeta in front of him. Zarbon forced the prince to his knees in front of the two tyrants. Vegeta looked up through hazy eyes as the bloodthirsty crowd screamed its approval with almost manic energy; Vegeta had made more than a few enemies in Frieza's army as well as Cooler's, and everyone wanted to see him die.

"KILL HIM!"

"WORTHLESS SON OF A BITCH!"

"LET ME AT 'IM!"

"What do you have to say for yourself, soldier?" Cooler asked, a dark smirk of satisfaction on his face. Vegeta observed him, before lowering his head in defeat. He stayed silent, and Cooler's smirk spread. "No defense. How sad. So you admit to your treason? You admit to the accusations of breaking the rules of engagement in the Planet Trade Organization by destroying a planet that was off-limits on your own accord, and then attempting desertion of my brother's army, while orchestrating the desertion of two other soldiers as well?"

The crowd hushed to an electric buzz while Trunks observed his father in alarm. He couldn't get a sense of Vegeta's ki at all. His fear was worsened when a soldier next to him whispered to another man, "You gettin' a read on Vegeta?"

"Yeah, but it can't be right. It's barely over 1,000."

"No, that's what I'm getting too. Damn. I thought he was a lot stronger than that. Guess he ain't what he's cracked up to be."

_Oh, what's the fucking point. Might as well get this shit over with,_ Vegeta's defeated voice rang through Trunks' mind.

"Yes," Vegeta finally admitted, his head still down.

"The sentence is worth or death," King Cold announced, to no one's surprise. The sentence was the same for everyone, no matter the "crimes" committed. "You know the drill, Vegeta. If you can prove your worth in battle, you will be forgiven."

Vegeta stayed silent. He did indeed know the drill. The problem was that the fights were never fair. The Colds always made sure to completely overmatch the soldiers being "tried." He was intimately familiar with the routine, because he was usually the handpicked soldier on the other side of this equation.

His thinking was confirmed when King Cold continued, "Your opponent is Zarbon. You two may begin!"

Zarbon smirked as everyone roared their approval. He shoved Vegeta with his boot, and the prince helplessly toppled over to the sand. Vegeta rolled over and struggled valiantly to get up to his feet as Zarbon started to circle him.

"Come on, monkey prince. Do try to give me something of a challenge," Zarbon told him mockingly, before laughing. He knew the extent of Vegeta's injuries, but he didn't care. Even though he himself always obeyed Frieza to the letter, the tyrant wouldn't have hesitated to kill him off if he pulled half the shit that Vegeta did. The Saiyan was rebellious, but his penchant for violence and ruthlessness earned him favoritism with Frieza that burned Zarbon alive with jealousy. It delighted Zarbon to no end that Frieza's patience had finally run out with Vegeta, and that _he_ was going to be the one to deliver the Saiyan's last defeat.

Vegeta managed to get back up to his knees before Zarbon leveled him with a punch that forced him flat on his back. Vegeta groaned in pain when he felt his jaw break from the blow. Trunks' eyes narrowed and he reached up behind him, gripping the handle of his sword.

"Pathetic," Zarbon laughed, leaning over the prince.

Vegeta opened his eyes and growled, anger suddenly sparking in his dark eyes. Fueled by his pain and his hatred from Frieza taking his tail, Vegeta scraped up everything he had left and flung his hand up towards Zarbon, releasing a violent, blue ki blast that caught Zarbon completely off guard. The blast hit Zarbon right in the face, making the alien scream in agony as he stumbled back, covering his eyes. Trunks hesitated when he saw the move, before smirking a little with pride. His pride was quickly replaced with concern when he saw Vegeta's arm fall and his eyes slip closed.

"You're going to pay DEARLY for that!" Zarbon hissed furiously, stalking back over to the completely defenseless Saiyan. "I'm going to-"

"-die," Trunks finished for him nonchalantly. Zarbon sputtered, before looking down and seeing a sword right through his chest. He looked up at Trunks in shock, and the look was shared by thousands. Cooler and King Cold were both wide-eyed and stunned at what they were seeing. Trunks withdrew his sword, and without a word, sliced Zarbon's head clean off his body.

There was nothing but silence in the night. Trunks took advantage of the moment, turning around and going over to his father. He gingerly crouched down next to him with a wince, his knee still in bad shape. He reached out and put a hand on his father's chest, his blue eyes studying Vegeta intently. He was deathly pale and soaked in sweat, his breathing coming out quickly and harshly. The alarm spread through Trunks when his sensitive nose caught an enormous amount of blood.

"Father," he softly said, trying hard to keep the panic out of his voice. Vegeta looked wrecked, making the beating Trunks saw him take at Frieza's hands look tame. Trunks swallowed hard, raising his hand just under his father's swelling jaw to feel for his pulse. It was weak. Vegeta groaned at the contact, and Trunks' brow furrowed in concern. He reached up and put a gentle hand on his father's forehead. Vegeta was cold to the touch. "Just hang on a little longer. I'll help you," he promised.

"He's going to die one way or another, you know," a dangerously smooth voice said.

Trunks looked over at Cooler out of the corner of his eye, and his blue eyes darkened. Slowly, he stood up. He twirled his sword a couple of times in his hand, observing the cocky looking alien in front of him.

"For your sake, you better hope he doesn't," Trunks borderline snarled.

Cooler laughed at him. "You want to challenge _me_? I don't know who you are, boy, but I do know that you are a fool. You are completely outnumbered."

"Oh, just get _on_ with it, Cooler," King Cold cut in, sounding completely bored. "We have others that need to still be tried. He's just a boy. Kill him-"

"Enough," Trunks interrupted. "I don't know who you are either, and quite frankly, I don't care. I'm taking Vegeta, and we're leaving. If any of you try to get in my way, you'll all die. What's it going to be?"

"How about a third option?" Cooler sneered at him. Trunks scowled; he didn't have time for this bullshit. A burst of wind swept up around the teenager, fluttering his jacket and his hair as Cooler continued, "How about _you_ die instead-"

The scouter on Cooler's face suddenly exploded, cutting him off. Thousands of other scouters exploded at the same time. Simultaneous alarm and fascination rose up through everyone as a whirlwind of sand blew up around Trunks. Vegeta was still close enough that the sand hit him dead on, stirring him back to reality. He squinted over at the blurred sight of his son standing a few feet away from him right as a wave of golden ki exploded around Trunks. His lavender hair tinted gold and his eyes turned into a piercing and ruthless shade of teal as a wave of sheer energy and strength blew up the sand all around him.

Back on Frieza's flagship, a glass of wine shattered as the projection ended.

Suddenly very conscious, Vegeta's eyes were wide with shock as he stared blankly at his son. He was completely amazed by the display of power in front of him. Absent-mindedly, he wondered if he had died, or if he was hallucinating.

_Trunks is a Super Saiyan…?_ he wondered in disbelief. Catching his thought, Trunks cast him a sideways glance and a smirk. Vegeta then knew this was very real. He was so delirious with pain and with the adrenaline of seeing _his son_ making the legendary transformation, that he actually laughed out loud. His laughter broke into harsh coughing and he winced. He rested his head back and caved into his exhaustion again, smiling as he did.

He could die now with pride. He did have a legacy. Trunks was his legacy.

Trunks frowned as he observed his father. He didn't have much time left. The teenager had to make this quick. He was vaguely aware of Cooler making some threats to him, but he paid him no mind. Turning and raising his hand out, Trunks fired a lethal ki blast that took out hundreds of soldiers in one fell swoop. He was cold and methodical as he continued firing, the Super Saiyan speed and strength in his blasts rendering any hope for escape useless.

The chaos that ensued was a whirlwind of violence. Hundreds of soldiers suddenly charged Trunks, with others taking to the air and firing rapid blasts in his direction. The teenager took to the air in a golden blur faster than anyone could see and killed everyone who was airborne in under two seconds with masterful wielding of his sword. Some saw the inevitable and tried to escape, but Trunks saw them and killed them immediately.

His senses suddenly picked up on a powerful blast coming his way. He turned and batted it away, but his stomach clenched at what he saw.

Cooler had his arm wrapped around Vegeta's throat while he grinned sadistically up at Trunks who was still in mid-air. Vegeta's eyes were squeezed tightly shut from the pressure Cooler was applying. Behind him, King Cold towered, his arms crossed smugly over his chest.

"Bad move, kid," Cooler laughed. Trunks descended and landed uneasily on his bad knee. He stumbled back a step, before growling and pulling his sword back. Cooler tightened his grip around Vegeta's neck, making fresh sweat appear on Vegeta's brow. Cooler knew he was outmatched in his current form, and could tell this boy wouldn't give him the necessary time to make the transformations to even the field between them, so he was resorting to this. "You're fast, but you're not that fast. I'll have his neck broken before you even get here."

Trunks gripped his sword tighter and snarled, "Let's just see about that."

Cooler and King Cold both raised their hands towards him and fired a stream of shots that would have effortlessly leveled planets. Cooler suddenly stopped firing when he saw his father's body fall in a beheaded heap next to him. He released Vegeta who collapsed to the ground, before turning around to find himself looking into enraged teal eyes. Cooler didn't have time to get out a word before Trunks sliced him clean in half at the waist. He then fired a blast and launched Cooler's mutilated body clean into the distance. Trunks twirled his sword up and put it back in his holster, before going back over to his father, extinguishing his Super Saiyan transformation.

He knelt down next to Vegeta and gingerly turned him over. The teenager blinked in surprise when his hands were suddenly covered with blood by the simple action. It was only then that he realized that the black battle uniform his father was wearing was drenched in blood. His heart sank to his stomach as he looked up around him. Vegeta needed help, but where could he get help? He was surrounded by thousands of corpses, and his father was going to become one of them if he didn't think fast.

"Shit," Trunks cursed bleakly, looking down at Vegeta who was shaking uncontrollably at this point. Trunks bit his bottom lip, before gently grabbing his father to lift him. Vegeta recoiled from the contact and growled out of pure instincts. "It's alright," Trunks reassured him, soothing Vegeta's nerves with his voice. "I got you now. It's alright. You'll be alright," he promised, hoisting his father up over both of his shoulders like a soldier as he stood. Trunks glanced around, before setting his sights on King Cold's flagship. Yes, that was it! There were sure to be healing tanks in there.

Except there weren't any. Trunks was almost desperate now, and was wondering if his father would last long enough for them to go to another planet so he could get help, when he finally walked into a medical room. To his dismay though, there were no healing tanks. There was, however, one blue alien working with a white coat on, looking like he was mixing a solution. He looked startled at Trunks' appearance.

The teenager hissed at him, "My father needs help. Help him," he ordered, going over to a white table. He gently laid Vegeta down on the table as the alien snorted.

"Heh. I'm busy-"

His words were cut off by a steel grip on his throat, furious blue eyes locking on his.

"I'm not fucking asking you, I'm _telling_ you. Help him," Trunks snarled in his face.

"Okay, okay, I'll try," the alien immediately caved.

"You better do more than try," Trunks hissed, shoving the alien roughly over towards Vegeta. The alien gave him a glare, before going over to the white table, muttering under his breath about his talent being unappreciated. He observed Vegeta with the eye of someone who had seen this a million times, before turning to Trunks.

"Help me get this armor off him."

Trunks didn't need to be told twice. It was only when they stripped Vegeta of his armor and his black battle uniform, that Trunks finally realized how badly injured his father was. A wave of nausea overcame him and he had to close his eyes and breathe deeply to keep from vomiting. Once he regained himself, he turned back and worked on trying to stop the bleeding. It wasn't long until they used up all the gauze and bandages they had in the medical room. In desperation, Trunks shrugged off his leather jacket and peeled off his black tank top. He ripped it to shreds, using those as makeshift bandages while the alien checked Vegeta's eyes. The prince moaned weakly in pain.

"This doesn't look good. He has severe internal injuries and he's lost too much blood."

"Take some of mine then and give it to him."

"I don't think it'll be enough. I don't think he's going to make it-"

"Don't you FUCKING tell me that!" Trunks suddenly screamed in his face, dangerously close to a mental breaking point. He wasn't aware that he had tears in his eyes now. "He lives, or I swear I will tear you to shreds and-"

_Gods above, stop yelling already,_ Vegeta's weak voice suddenly rang in Trunks' mind. The teenager immediately stopped his ranting and looked down at his father.

"I'll go try to find the rest of the personnel," the alien told Trunks. "They might know how to help him better than me," he added, before scurrying out of the room with every intention of doing just that. He saw the blood still dripping off the handle of the teenager's sword, and he had no intention of being chopped to bits.

"You have to hold on. You hear me?" Trunks growled down at his father. Vegeta forced his eyes open halfway, looking at Trunks, his eyes glazed over.

_Told you not to come back. You did…why…?_

"Because you're my father. I had to."

Vegeta's eyes drifted closed and Trunks didn't hear anything else. The teenager was about to panic when Vegeta weakly reached up his hand to him. Trunks took it instantly, before frowning as Vegeta lowered their hands. The prince put Trunks' hand on his bloodied chest right over his heart, and covered the teenager's hand with his own.

_Do it, kid._

It took a few seconds before it dawned on Trunks what Vegeta was telling him to do. He growled and tried pulling his hand free, but Vegeta's grip tightened on his hand.

"No!" Trunks practically yelled down in his father's face. "Are you insane? I won't do it!"

_What did I tell you about yelling, brat?_

"Well don't ask me to do something like that! You're going to be fine!"

_No, I'm not._ He didn't mean physically.

"Yes you are! You have to be! I…you can't…" Trunks' voice finally broke.

_Don't. Not for me. I deserve this._

"No you don't. Nobody deserves this."

_I do. Rotten to the core. Evil bastard. I deserve it. What goes around…_ his grip loosened on Trunks' hand briefly, before tightening again.

"That isn't you. That's just what he turned you into. You could be better, I _know_ you could be better!"

_Just do it, Trunks. Rather the reason I die, be you than Frieza. Super Saiyan._ He managed a weak smile.

"I won't…I can't…"

_Please, son._

Finally, after a few seconds, Trunks' hand started to glow.


	13. Aftermath

He was briefly tempted with the way Vegeta asked him, but he tried the opposite instead.

The trembling racking Vegeta's body finally came to a stop, his grip on Trunks' hand loosening. Trunks took a deep breath and kept his hand on his father's chest, continuing to feed his ki directly to his heart. Vegeta's depleted system was almost desperately absorbing the energy to replenish his almost non-existent ki, and Trunks could feel sweat breaking out on his own skin as he gave Vegeta practically everything he had.

Finally, he felt his father's weak and faint heartbeat grow a little stronger. Vegeta's skin, which had been cold to the touch, warmed a bit under his son's hand.

When Trunks heard footsteps, he withdrew his hand from Vegeta's chest. Almost immediately, the teenager staggered backwards before falling to the floor, completely drained of his energy. Energy transfer was a technique Gohan showed him, but it was only good for emergencies, and precisely for this reason. Trunks slowly sat up, raising one shaking hand and wiping the sweat off his face. He looked at his father with concern. Vegeta was out cold again, but at least Trunks had bought his father a little more time. Looking over his shoulder, Trunks cursed as he heard footsteps. The alien was coming back.

With far more effort than it should have taken him, Trunks crawled forward and got his sword. He forced himself up to his feet and turned around right as the door opened.

The blue medic alien walked in quickly, visibly shaken. He had heard the explosions going on outside, but had no idea of the magnitude of the massacre that had occurred. He worked for King Cold in science and medicine, and though he wasn't fond of his superior, the sight of King Cold's beheaded body through one of the ship portals had sent cold fear down his spine. Someone had been strong enough to decimate the deadliest army in the entire universe, and he had a good feeling that the boy who came to him for help was that someone.

"Um, alright. I think I can-"

The alien froze at the sight of Trunks, his words forgotten. The teenager's face was red, and he was breathing heavily. His sword was clenched tightly in his fist and his blue eyes were locked right on him. Not knowing that the boy was completely exhausted, the medic assumed the teenager was something else: enraged.

"You think what?" Trunks snapped impatiently. The alien flinched at the teenager's tone and backed up a little, his eyes growing wide. Trunks looked at him in confusion. He had never had anyone stare at him with such terror and apprehension before. He took a deep breath, reminded himself that now was not the time to frighten anyone, and tried again.

"Look, I'm not going to hurt you, I just need your help. Can you help my father or not?"

Trunks noted with relief that the alien seemed a little more at ease with that, though not by much.

"Well," the alien started, his eyes shifting to Vegeta, "We have no regeneration tanks on board which is what he really needs, and he won't survive long enough for us to get to the nearest station. There is a team on board and we think his only chance is if we try repairing the internal damage directly. If we can do that-"

"You mean surgery?"

"Yes. Judging from how much he's bleeding from the mouth and the bruising, his organs-"

Trunks raised a free hand to silence him. His eyes narrowed and he looked down, his senses picking up something. Someone was out there. The ki was faint, meaning it was either weak or far away.

A survivor? Frieza?

Trunks cursed under his breath. He was still weak from the energy transfer and was in no shape to fight – especially if it was Frieza who had just arrived. One of his eyes started twitching, and he rubbed at it impatiently.

"Give him the anesthesia then and do it," Trunks finally said.

"…Anesthesia?"

Trunks looked back up at the alien in clear disbelief. "You don't have any anesthesia? What about pain meds?"

"No, none of that. King Cold and his sons think such things will only promote weakness."

It was the most insane thing he had ever heard. Surgery without any kind of pain medication? Trunks stared almost helplessly at the medic, before turning around and looking down at his father who was still unconscious. The heavy bruising littering the prince's torso made Trunks' stomach clench. They had tried putting bandages on the deep lacerations in his skin and on his wrists but they were starting to soak through.

"Fine. Fine," Trunks spat out in exasperation. He glanced up towards the wall where he could still sense something. "Do what you can then."

He turned around right as the alien motioned to the door for others to come in. Trunks stepped aside as a team of three came in. The head blue alien spoke to them in a foreign language, and Trunks caught more than one look of distrust as they kept glancing over at him. One small purple alien got closer to Vegeta and peered at him curiously, and then immediately backed up in fear once he recognized the prince.

Trunks blinked in surprise as they all started yelling and arguing. He might not have understood their words, but he recognized his father's name in the conversation.

"What's going on?" Trunks cut in angrily.

The blue alien sighed and turned to him. "They don't want to help save him."

"What? Why not?"

"Because if we manage to save him, his power and his strength will skyrocket. And," the alien cleared his throat and looked over at Vegeta, "He is likely to kill us all as soon as he's recovered."

Trunks could practically feel his blood pressure rising as his face reddened with growing fury. He didn't have time for this bullshit.

"If you help him, I promise, you will all live. I won't let him harm any of you, you have my word. But if you refuse, you _will_ die, and it won't be Vegeta who kills you. You got it?" Trunks threatened, his eyes darkening as sweat ran down his bare back. He was struggling just to stand – he would be hard pressed to back up his words.

He didn't need to. His message was relayed and that got the aliens moving. Trunks bit his bottom lip, watching them anxiously for a few seconds as they tended to his father. The teenager frowned and glanced off to the side. Yes, there was definitely a ki signature he was picking up.

Trunks couldn't fight, so there was only one other option: flight. After all, this was a space ship.

He hesitated, looking back over at the aliens. They seemed to be legitimately trying to save Vegeta, but what if they killed him as soon as Trunks left the room?

He reached up to rub at his eye which was twitching again, wondering if he could muster up enough strength to fight if he had to, when the blue alien spoke up.

"You have to step out."

Trunks was squinting as he looked back up. "What?"

"You're making them nervous by hovering."

"Fine," Trunks sighed. "But I need one of you to come with me. We need to fly this thing off this planet as soon as possible."

"I don't think that's a good idea while we do this-"

"Something out there is coming, and I don't know what. It might be Frieza." At the sound of the tyrant's name, everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over at Trunks with wide eyes. Trunks, though, only at the blue alien. "Help me and my father, and I swear, I'll let you go. Somewhere where Frieza won't find you. You'll be free, all of you. Just please, I need your help."

The sincerity in the teenager's eyes wasn't lost on the alien. After a few seconds, he finally nodded. He said some words to the other aliens, and then walked back over to Trunks. He motioned for him to follow, and he did.

"You sure they don't need your help?" Trunks asked warily as he fell into step next to the alien. He looked over his shoulder.

"They can help him without me. They are more experienced with that anyways."

The teenager nodded, before looking at the alien. "Thanks for your help."

"Naji."

"What?"

"That's my name."

"Oh. I'm Trunks."

"Not from around here, are you, Trunks?"

Trunks frowned. "Not really, no."

"Well, you're not missing out on anything," Naji said, stepping inside of a large control room. "I was in here once when one of King Cold's soldiers set these coordinates, and I'm pretty sure I remember how to do it. If you pull that lever there," he pointed to a red lever by the door, where Trunks was standing, "It takes the ship off the grid, so no one-"

Trunks pulled the lever. Naji just blinked at him, before continuing, "Right. Anyways. You know where you want to go?"

The response was immediate.

"South sector. Planet Earth."

"Planet Earth it is."

* * *

Frieza's eyes were hard as he methodically surveyed the damage. His gaze lingered for a second on the beheaded body of his father and the remains of his brother, before he once again looked over the remains of his decimated army. The tyrant crossed his arms and sighed quietly. He had built his army from the ground up, and it was going to be unbelievably annoying to rebuild. And that wasn't even the most pressing matter at hand.

 _That boy._ He was so young, and yet… Frieza's tail whipped behind him as he looked down at the severed bottom half of his brother.

He sneered in disgust and kicked it away.

He had watched every second of the telecast of the Trials up until Trunks' transformation, when the teenager's power had ended the video transmission permanently. He was now standing right in the middle of where all the mayhem had occurred – and still could barely believe it.

A Super Saiyan? He had heard the legends, and overheard Vegeta, Nappa, and Raditz mention it a few times when he eavesdropped on their scouters. But never _once_ did he think the ridiculous stories actually had any merit. Frieza shook his head in disbelief, recalling his first encounter with Trunks and the brief power reading he got for the boy.

Frieza's eyes narrowed. The boy was strong, but he was stronger. Of this he was certain. And he was going to prove it by putting the boy's head on display for any that dare challenge him in the future…

"We've checked out the planet, Lord Frieza. There is no one here that's alive."

"I see," Frieza murmured, before turning to face Cui. "And what of the flagship?"

"Sir?" Cui asked warily, caught off guard.

"My father's flagship," Frieza answered, an impatient edge to his tone that sent a shiver of fear down Cui's spine. Frieza looked past Cui as he continued, "It was sitting right there, behind you, during the Trials, and now it's gone."

"Oh," Cui said, blinking in surprise. "I didn't-"

"Even know it was there in the first place. Yes, I see that. Well, Cui, there was at least one survivor of this blood bath, and my father's ship is now missing. Now, what do you suppose that implies?" Frieza asked, his angry and dark gaze shifting back to lock onto Cui, who actually took a frightened step back.

"Um…he took your father's ship and left the planet?" Cui squeaked out.

"Yes, precisely so," Frieza said with feigned politeness as his tail began to whip behind him. "Now, Zarbon is dead and is therefore useless to me. You will take over for him for the time being, and find out where my father's ship is and where it's going. I suggest you do so quickly, unless you want to become dead and useless as well. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Lord Frieza," Cui replied, wide-eyed at the silent upgrade in rank. Frieza's glare turned deadly, a reminder that his assignment was more from a lack of options, and Cui immediately added, "I'll get on it right away, sir."

"Good. We're leaving now so I can destroy this planet."

"Yes, Lord Frieza."

"…What are you waiting for?" Frieza deadpanned.

Not needing to be told twice, Cui scurried away towards Frieza's flagship. The low ranked soldier looked over his shoulder at the tyrant, as if fearing that he would be struck down if he wasn't looking. In doing so, he tripped over a dead body and nearly fell on his face. Frieza rolled his eyes and looked away.

He looked over the slaughtered men again with indifference, and then turned around to head back into his ship.

After all, they all had work to do.

* * *

Trunks was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, just a couple of feet away from his father, his sword protectively in his right hand. They had done the most archaic surgery job Trunks had ever seen, but that was the best they could do. Naji had told him that most of the time, soldiers as wounded as Vegeta were simply left to die when there were no tanks nearby. Very rare were the times when they had to save someone the way they had saved him, and it showed.

But they did it, and he supposed that was all that mattered. Trunks looked over to where Vegeta was resting, and sighed. He had no concrete sense of time, but he knew for sure the equivalent of several Earth days had passed. During all that time, Vegeta hadn't woken up, and Trunks hadn't slept.

If Trunks was being honest with himself, it was all starting to take its toll. The stress he'd been under recently had worn him down, physically and emotionally. It had taken the medics hours to help Vegeta, and in that time, Trunks had vomited twice. He was starving, he was sleep-deprived, and he was still reeling from his ordeal with the Tuffles. On top of all that, he had given a good amount of his blood so they could give it to Vegeta.

Trunks closed his eyes. It was quiet, and he could sense that the alien medics were on the opposite end of the ship. Even though Naji popped in every now and then to check on Vegeta, it was obvious the others were scared of him. Trunks didn't much care though. He liked the quiet.

He was about to doze off for some much-needed sleep when he sensed motion. Forcing his eyes open, he looked over at his father.

Vegeta tried opening his eyes, but he couldn't manage it. He tried moving, but he couldn't do that either. Everything hurt. Badly. He could only recall two or three other instances in his life where he had felt worse pain. That's what the damn tanks were for. Why wasn't he in one? Where the hell was he? Frustrated and disoriented, Vegeta forced himself to move. The strain quickly made his face red, and he barely managed to lift one shoulder to roll over when he was quickly stopped.

"Hey, take it easy," a familiar voice said. A strong hand was on his shoulder and easily pushed him back down so he was flat on his back. "You're not ready for all that yet."

Vegeta growled and tried speaking, but his jaw was wired shut. He squinted up at Trunks with effort, before closing his eyes again.

 _Why the fuck is it so bright in here? Turn that light off,_ Trunks heard his father's angry voice say in his mind. The teenager blinked and looked around. The room was dimly lit so he could rest better.

"How do you feel?" Trunks asked, frowning in concern. Vegeta's face was bright red, his eyes squeezed shut in pain. Fresh sweat was starting to break out all over his body.

_Told you what you had to do, boy. You didn't do it._

Trunks sighed. He should have known. His exhaustion suddenly came back in waves.

"I couldn't. You're my father. You know that."

 _So you can kill everyone else, but not me, just because we have the same goddamned blood,_ Vegeta sneered in disgust.

"It's insane and I won't ever do it. Hell, I saved your life-"

 _I didn't ask you to save me!_ Vegeta's mental voice snapped venomously, so much so that Trunks flinched. Vegeta was panting through his nose, struggling to breathe.

"Alright, alright, just take it easy-"

_One thing. Just one thing. Only thing I ever asked you for. Couldn't even do it. I thought you were strong, but you're still the same goddamned softhearted fool you were when we found you._

Trunks grit his teeth and looked down, his face reddening in frustration. He stayed silent for a moment before looking up at his father. Was anything ever good enough for this man?

"Look," Trunks finally started, his eyes narrowing. "If I wanted you dead, I would've just let Frieza end you. Or Zarbon. I came back to save you and that's what I did. If that makes me soft or whatever, then fine. So be it. But I don't get why you would want to die. You're going to get better. Why the hell can't you see that?"

Vegeta projected nothing mentally, falling into a bitter silence. What did the boy understand anyways? He was just that: nothing but a boy, unaccustomed to true hardships. How could he explain to his son how demoralizing it was to be broken down by Frieza the way he was? The tyrant had broken him physically and then mentally. He had fucking _begged_ for his tail – and then lost it anyways. The only thing that made him Saiyan was gone, stripped from him like a damn toy. It was humiliating.

Hell, the boy was practically more Saiyan now than he was. Trunks had achieved the state of the legendary Super Saiyan. What the hell had he ever achieved? A lifetime of wreaking havoc in Frieza's name?

With tremendous effort fueled by what little pride he had left, Vegeta forced himself to roll onto his side, giving Trunks his back. That was a good thing, since his face was beet red. He was clenching his fists so hard, fresh blood was seeping through his fingers as he dug into his palms.

 _Get out, kid,_ he growled. If the boy wasn't going to put him out of his misery, then the least he could do was leave him in peace to suffer alone while he regained his strength, both physical and mental.

What Vegeta didn't know, was that he wasn't in total command of his telepathy yet. In brooding over what Frieza had done to him, he had unknowingly projected to Trunks the images of what happened with the tyrant. The teenager was left wide-eyed, staring at the small stub of fur on his father's lower back, a stub that was red and swollen at the tip from where the rest of the tail had gotten cut off. In all the chaos, he hadn't even noticed that Vegeta had lost it.

Trunks opened his mouth to tell his father that he was sorry about his tail, but he wisely thought better of it. Pity or sympathy would not be welcomed, not now, and possibly not ever. He shifted his weight uncomfortably, wanting to offer some kind of comfort, but not knowing how.

Finally, he sadly realized he could only offer that comfort by leaving Vegeta alone.

The prince was solely focusing on breathing as Trunks started walking away. Vegeta was relieved, and finally let himself relax as much as he could under the circumstances. He was almost out again when he felt Trunks put something in his bloodied hand.

"I went back to base looking for you. No one was there, but I found this. I thought you'd want it."

Vegeta frowned. He didn't need to open his eyes to know that he was holding the broken armor piece with his family's royal crest engraved on it.

_You keep this. It's useless shit._

" _You_ keep it. It's your useless shit," Trunks said, smirking a little. "If you don't like it, then get rid of it. Though it doesn't seem like you've ever been in a rush to."

 _Watch your mouth, boy,_ Vegeta warned. His warning lost some effect when his voice came through weakly.

"Just saying. He took your tail, but there are some things he can't take, so don't let him."

 _Get lost, half-breed,_ Vegeta snarled. _You have outworn your welcome._

"Suit yourself," Trunks sighed. Vegeta heard his footsteps, and then a door opening and closing. Then there was silence.

Vegeta breathed deeply through his nose. Not for the first time, he gripped the broken piece of armor tight to crush it to pieces. What the hell did he need it for, anyways? He knew the crest by heart, had memorized every line. It was useless shit, just like he'd told Trunks. Worthless.

Not for the first time, Vegeta loosened his grip right as the piece was about to break. As soon as he did, he sighed, and was out again, falling into a deep, healing sleep.

As soon as he did, Trunks came back in. The teenager checked over his father briefly, making sure he was as comfortable as he could be. He then walked over to the wall again and slid down until he was sitting. He pulled his sword close. Even though the other aliens were scared to death of him, he still didn't fully trust them.

Finally, after a few minutes, he couldn't fight his fatigue anymore and he fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

"I am not sure of his name. He's a lavender haired boy with blue eyes. He has a sword which he knows how to use. I am not sure if Vegeta survived or not, but it seems that the two are allies, at the very least. This boy is powerful for his age, but I am sure you can handle bringing him back here. Use Vegeta as leverage if necessary, if he somehow managed to survive."

"Yes, Lord Frieza."

"Cui will get you a lead soon on their location."

"Very good, Lord Frieza."

"Good luck, Ginyu," Frieza said, before reaching up and ending the transmission on his scouter.

His eyes remained fixed on a large screen in front of him. He rotated his glass of wine with one hand as he stared at the screen with intensity, where Trunks' Super Saiyan transformation was being played over and over again on an endless loop. It'd been days now since the fiasco at the Trials, and while they worked on finding his father's ship, Frieza had entertained himself by unifying his father and brother's military forces under his ranks.

And, of course, watching the loop of Trunks' transformation whenever he had a moment.

Frieza raised his glass for a drink, and cursed inwardly that the video feed died just moments after the boy transformed. It would have been useful to see him live in battle.

"Lord Frieza," one of the technicians said, letting himself right into Frieza's office. "We have-"

That was as far as he got before Frieza sent a beam straight through his heart, without moving his eyes from the screen. The technician was dead before he hit the floor.

Honestly. How many times did he have to tell them not to barge in like that? They would never learn.

Frieza sighed. Maybe he _was_ going to miss Zarbon…

"May I come in, sir?" a terrified voice squeaked from the door.

"Of course, Lino," Frieza politely greeted. "What was the reading?"

"Um, well, the machine exploded while it was still climbing-"

"What was the reading?"

"The last recorded reading was over five million, sir."

That made Frieza look over. "What?" he asked, blinking in disbelief. "Did you say five _million_?"

"Yes, Lord Frieza. And all signs indicate that he was not fully powered up to maximum when the machine finally exploded."

A chill ran down Frieza's back right through his tail. He turned his attention back to the screen.

"That is all, Lino," the tyrant dismissed, almost absent-mindedly. As the technician ran away for his life, Frieza raised his glass for another drink, mulling over this new information.

 _Five million!_ How preposterous. How was that even possible? He would have found the boy a long time ago, even if he was on the furthest planet at the edge of the universe. That power was higher than his even at maximum strength.

No. He would not have missed such a powerful boy. Plus, there was no way he could be so young and so outrageously powerful. Super Saiyan or not. No, clearly, the power level reading was simply wrong. It had to be. There was no other explanation.

Frieza scoffed as footsteps sounded by the door again, before lingering there.

"That is enough, Lino," Frieza said, sounding bored as he started rotating his wine glass. "The power level is wrong. I have no doubt of this. I will prove that the boy is not that strong, and destroy the half-breed monkey personally. That is all."

"You fight that boy, you will die, Frieza."

Frieza's eyes narrowed and his hand stilled. Slowly, his seat rotated so he was facing the door. He stared at his new guest for some time, before beginning to lazily rotate his glass again.

He feigned a smile, even though his eyes were murderous. "Well. You sure are resilient, aren't you?"

"More so than you think."

"I like your new legs. Metallic. How modern of you."

"I did what I had to do. The boy mutilated me, but he didn't finish me. My men worked to the bone and made me better than ever."

"I see that," Frieza snidely responded as Cooler stepped forward. Frieza leaned back in his chair. "Unfortunate what that monkey did to you and Father. Absolutely heinous."

"Did you look for him?"

"I did. Searched the planet. Didn't find him, or _you,_ for that matter."

 _Because I would have ended you permanently if I had,_ Frieza mused silently.

"I called for my men to come retrieve me. The boy had already taken Father's ship, it seems."

"Indeed, he did. I destroyed the planet after my search, and I have my men looking for Father's ship now. We will find him soon."

"And then what? You will destroy him?" Cooler sneered.

"That is the plan, yes," Frieza sneered back.

Cooler growled angrily, his new, metallic tail whizzing behind him in irritation.

"Your arrogance blinds you, brother. This boy is stronger than you. He will destroy you easily if you rush into this battle."

"Well, _someone_ has to kill the boy. And it certainly won't be you, since you're too weak. And it won't be Father, since he's dead."

"Yes, Father is dead, by the boy's hand. And that is precisely why the boy must die. That monkey made a mockery of our family, and I won't stand for it."

Frieza rotated his glass quietly. He didn't give a damn about his father dying, or his brother dying either, for that matter. He wanted the Saiyan boy dead because he hated the thought of some monkey mutt being stronger than him. That was it, and that was all. Cooler had pride in their family, and his motives were different. He wanted revenge. Frieza almost snorted in disgust. Revenge was emotional. Emotions were weakness on the battlefield.

Frieza sighed. If only his brother had stayed dead.

"What do you suggest then?" Frieza asked out of curiosity, looking back up at his older brother as he took a sip from his wine glass.

"An alliance."

"…come again?"

"You heard me. I am stronger with the repairs my men made. Separately, neither of us is a match for him. But together, we can share energy."

"It has been a long time since we tried that outdated technique."

"And last time, it doubled both of our strengths."

"Mmm, how poetic. Two brothers working together to _avenge_ their dear father-"

"This is serious," Cooler snarled, his metallic tail whipping now. "The boy is a Super Saiyan. I could hardly believe it when I saw it. The only way we can destroy him is by working together and doubling our strength through the old technique of sharing energy."

Frieza finished his wine glass, and then crushed it to pieces in his hand. His seat slowly rotated until he was facing the screen again. He watched Trunks transform again, and could practically feel the power the boy was unleashing just by watching the feed. And that was with the sound turned off. He couldn't imagine seeing it in person.

"It's the only way," Cooler said, now standing with his arms crossed as he also watched the screen. His eyes were dark with hatred and revenge. Frieza observed him out of the corner of his eye, before looking back at the screen.

"So it seems," Frieza finally said. "I will accept your alliance on one condition."

"What's that?"

"I deliver the killing shot."

"Done."

* * *

Trunks woke up hours later, though it felt like minutes later, when he felt someone nudging him in the shoulder. The teenager frowned and looked up through bleary eyes to see Naji standing over him.

"Saiyans like to eat, right? I brought you something," the blue alien said, handing something down to him. Trunks yawned and took it, looking at it closer. It looked like a loaf of bread. He squeezed it. At least it wasn't rock hard.

He looked up and gave Naji a grateful smile. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it, kid. Least I could do, with what you promised to do for us."

Trunks nodded, and broke off a piece of the bread. He tossed it into his mouth, before looking over at Vegeta, who was sound asleep on his side. Trunks frowned, wanting to save some bread for him, but not sure how that would work with his jaw.

"His jaw is healing fast. It was a clean break. The other injuries are what's taking time."

"Oh. That's good then, I guess. About his jaw."

"Yeah," Naji agreed, glancing at Vegeta with a bit of apprehension. "Anyways. Let me know if you need anything, kid."

"Alright," Trunks said. He looked down and kept eating as Naji left the room. He was eating slowly even though he was starving. He didn't know how much food they had, and from what Vegeta had told Nappa and Raditz, Earth was far from where they were-

Trunks' head snapped up. Shit! He'd forgotten all about Nappa!

_He's dead. Don't waste your brain power on that fool._

Startled, Trunks looked over at his father with open-mouthed surprise. Vegeta was awake and squinting at him.

"You heard me?" Trunks asked. Vegeta growled from deep in his chest in annoyance. Trunks smiled. "Yeah, dumb question, huh? Wow, I didn't know I could talk to you using my mind."

_Of course you can. You just have to learn how._

"Will you show me how?"

_The hell do I look like? Your mother? Teach yourself, boy._

Trunks nodded, before his smile disappeared as he remembered what had triggered the conversation. "Wait. Nappa's dead?"

Vegeta sighed and closed his eyes again.

_Yes._

"Frieza?"

_Not exactly._

Trunks waited for more, but no more came. He opened his mouth to press, when Vegeta cut in.

_Where are we going?_

"I set the coordinates to go to Planet Earth."

 _Earth?_ Vegeta asked, some confusion in his voice.

"Yeah."

_Earth… Raditz…_

"Right, you sent him there."

_Purge it?_

"No, to get Go-um, to get Kakarot," Trunks said, looking at his father with some concern. "You sure you're okay?"

' _m fine,_ Vegeta answered in a groggy voice, more asleep than awake.

"I can leave and you can get some rest if you want-"

 _Don't need rest, and I don't fucking need you to look out for me, boy,_ Vegeta snapped, his voice suddenly alert as he opened his eyes part way to glare at Trunks. Trunks offered him a warm smile in response.

"Whatever you say."

_Hn. Arrogant little prick._

"Well, I _am_ your son."

Vegeta snorted, and smirked a little as his eyes closed.

_Fair enough, kid._

"Can I ask you something?"

_No._

"I'm going to ask anyways."

_Don't you ever shut up?_

"Depends for who. You can't really do anything to stop me right now anyways, unless you want me to leave so you can rest-"

_Fine! Shit! This is why I never wanted any brats. Fine. One question. Get on with it, boy._

"I only get one question?"

_That counts as a question. We're done._

"What? That doesn't count!" Trunks yelled. Vegeta winced, and Trunks immediately added in a softer voice, "That doesn't count. You know damn well it doesn't."

 _You know damn well that you're lucky I can't move, or I'd break some bones on your face,_ Vegeta growled.

"Yeah, well I should take advantage while I can."

 _Hn._ Vegeta took a deep breath, swallowing heavily. His head was hurting fiercely, but it paled in comparison to the excruciating pain wracking the rest of his body. Talking to the boy was actually helping keep his mind off it, making it at least a little more bearable.

 _Alright. One question,_ Vegeta said again, his voice tired. Might as well humor the kid. He had nothing else to distract him from his pain.

"What were your parents like?"

On second thought, the pain wasn't THAT bad.

_Oh, fuck this. Get out so I can get some damn sleep._

"Hey, come on, you said you'd answer it," Trunks said. Father and son both frowned at the same time. "That's not fair."

 _Life's not fair,_ Vegeta sneered. _Deal with it._

"I know that life's not fair-"

 _Oh? And what have you ever struggled with?_ Vegeta asked snidely.

"Fine. You want to know? Fine, then I'll tell you. When I was an infant, these androids were unleashed on my planet. They killed everyone. That's what I had to grow up in. They killed everyone I cared about, everyone I loved. I had to learn to protect my mother, and the people that were left. I had to learn how to survive. And even right now, I'm not there with my mother, and I have no idea if they found her and killed her yet. If they do, I have to live with that. I left on this trip not to come ruin your life, I was looking for someone who could help save my world, and I failed. And fine, I didn't have it as hard as you. I see that now. Your life is hard, but I didn't exactly have it easy either, alright?"

Trunks' face was red and hot. He didn't realize until he finished his rant that his eyes had started to water as he talked about his mother. He looked away, took a deep breath, and reined in his tears. The stress was getting to him again.

The silence was thick between them. Trunks snuck a look at his father, but Vegeta had his eyes closed with a scowl on his face. Trunks sighed and looked down, admiring his boots.

_I didn't know my father that well. Only saw him every few days or so. I was small when he handed me over to Frieza. Frieza later killed him. Nothing more to say about that._

Vegeta's voice was tired again. Trunks massaged his damaged knee quietly and kept his eyes down, as if afraid he'd ruin the rare moment by looking over or saying something.

_My mother was a good queen. I spent most of my time with her up until she was killed. Frieza ordered it, for whatever blasted reason. It happened in front of me. Nothing more to say there either._

"Do you ever miss them?"

 _I said one question,_ Vegeta growled.

Silence for a minute, and then:

_But to answer your question. No, I don't miss them._

"Really? Why not?"

_What's the point? They're dead._

"I guess."

_My turn. Who the hell is your mother?_

"Oh, well, you probably don't remember her," Trunks said sheepishly.

_Try me. I remember all my good lays._

Trunks' face flushed red. "Well… you know, she was just a girl you had a thing with-"

_What did she look like?_

Trunks shrugged, trying his best to appear disinterested as he looked away. "Aw, you know. Blue eyes, like mine."

Vegeta frowned. _I've never had a woman with your coloring._

"You're tired. We'll talk about this when you're clearer," Trunks offered, sneaking Vegeta a nervous glance. He hadn't given much thought into how much to tell Vegeta about Bulma. Maybe it didn't matter since he already knew that he had a son. But telling him the absolute truth would mean telling him about time travel, since Vegeta would quickly realize he had never met the woman Trunks was describing.

 _What was her name?_ Vegeta persisted.

"You mean you actually took note of some of their names?" Trunks asked with a smirk.

Vegeta snorted, before Trunks heard a mumble in his mind: _thinks he's so damn smart…_ The prince shifted and tried rolling onto his back again, but his face quickly betrayed his agony. Trunks got up as fast as he could.

"Here, let me give you a hand."

He reached out to Vegeta, who batted his hand away.

 _Don't need your damn help, boy,_ Vegeta growled. Trunks sighed and stood his ground, ready to help if needed. He winced at the badly damaged skin on his father's body, both from Frieza's "session" and beating, and from the hackjob surgery they needed to do because of it.

Vegeta groaned and panted for air as soon as he was on his back. Oh, what he would give for a rejuvenation chamber. He squinted up at Trunks, ready to mentally bark at the boy to go away already. He stopped when he saw the teenager looking him over with a look that Vegeta hadn't seen too often in his life:

Genuine concern.

Vegeta almost didn't know what to say to that look. He frowned and leaned his head back, observing his son. He sighed. Maybe Frieza hit him one too many times in the face…

 _Here, kid._ Trunks looked over, blinking in surprise when Vegeta offered him back the broken piece of armor.

"What? No, that's yours-"

_Take it, or I'll destroy it. Besides. Your chain is gone. You need a replacement, even if it's this shitty thing._

Trunks took the broken piece back, and smiled a little. "Thanks."

_Whatever. Now go get lost, boy. I'm tired of seeing your face._

"Alright, I'll leave so you can sleep."

 _Hn. So lucky I can't move,_ Vegeta muttered as Trunks walked to the door. He was sound asleep before the door even closed behind Trunks.

The teenager immediately walked back in, went back to his usual spot, and took a seat. He looked over the broken armor piece, and smiled a little as he rotated it in his hands. He was slowly starting to get to know his father, and he couldn't have been more pleased. He put it in the inner pocket of his jacket, and then picked up his sword again, his smile slowly melting into a troubled expression.

He was relieved to finally be going home. He could gather the Dragon Balls and wish to go back to his time. Then his mother from his time could fix the time machine, and he could go back and set things right. Maybe even use the Dragon Balls again to wish for his father's memory of him to be erased. Yes, everything was falling into place.

Why, then, did it feel like he was making a horrible mistake by going to Earth?


	14. Volatile Situations

Trunks frowned as he tried surveying the area. He couldn't sense a thing. Straining his hearing, he tried picking up a sound as he walked against the wall, but everything was quiet.

 _Too_ quiet. He peeked his head around a corner, and caught a glimpse of a shadow move. He reached up behind him to grip his sword, but his hand only met air.

He barely turned around in time to duck out of the way before his own sword took his head off. Vegeta whirled the sword with an expertise that caught Trunks completely off guard as the teenager suddenly found himself on the defensive. He dodged his father's relentless attacks and then reappeared behind Vegeta. The prince snarled and tried elbowing Trunks in the face, but his son ducked and kneed him right in the kidneys with much more strength than he intended to use.

Vegeta immediately dropped to his hands and knees, coughing hoarsely. Trunks' eyes widened in alarm and he knelt down next to his father, putting a hand on his back.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked worriedly. "I didn't mean to-"

He was interrupted by a hard elbow right to the face that sent him right against the wall. Trunks glanced up in surprise, brushing at his now-bleeding nose with his forearm.

"Fucking idiot," Vegeta hissed, "Drop your guard and you're dead-"

Trunks suddenly reappeared behind Vegeta again, when his father surprised him by doing the same thing. Back to back, Vegeta hooked Trunks' arm and turned him around, grabbing the teenager by the throat and bringing the sword down hard as he forced Trunks to bend over backwards. Trunks caught his hand, and was surprised by how much strength he had to use to stop Vegeta from killing him right there. Vegeta's hand was shaking as he used as much strength as he could to try bringing the sword down all the way, now only inches from Trunks' throat as he continued forcing the teenager backwards.

"What are you going to do now, Super Saiyan?" Vegeta sneered down at Trunks. Trunks was grinding his teeth together. He could easily overpower his father with raw strength, but that wasn't the point of this particular exercise. His ki was off-limits as well, leaving him scrambling as he thought of what to do. Vegeta smirked and tightened his grip on Trunks' throat. "What's the matter? You seem a little uncomfortable."

Trunks then surprised Vegeta by stopping his resistance and falling back, forcing his father to fall with him. Vegeta rolled forward and got back up fast. He turned around and Trunks kicked the sword right out of his hand. The teenager attempted a roundhouse kick that would've taken his father's head off, and Vegeta was barely able lean back far enough to get out of the way as the two exchanged near misses at a speed too fast for humans to follow.

Vegeta finally broke the stalemate by blocking a punch and then painfully twisting Trunks' arm as he came up behind him. He punched Trunks hard right in the back of the head before the teenager elbowed him in the face. Trunks spun around and tried kicking Vegeta in the chest, but the prince caught his foot. Lightning fast, Trunks used his father as leverage and nailed Vegeta in the side of the head with his other foot.

Vegeta saw an explosion of bright colors as he spun and dropped to his knees, in a daze as he tried shaking off the blow. He tried to get up when he felt the heel of Trunks' palm press up against the back of his head.

"Game over."

"Hn." Vegeta slowly reached up to feel the side of his head, bringing his hand down to make sure there was no blood. Trunks came around and offered his father his hand to help him stand, but Vegeta growled and batted his hand away. "I do not need your help."

"Alright," Trunks said, reaching behind him and putting his sword back in his holster while Vegeta got back up to his feet. His father never once took his hand, but that didn't stop Trunks from always offering.

"You still need to work on your defense. You leave yourself unguarded too much of the time."

"It'll be different in a real fight, Father," Trunks said, pulling his hair back to tie it up. "I'll be able to use my ki."

"You will have to fight Frieza in hand-to-hand combat, where he is the most skilled warrior in the universe," Vegeta spat out. "Remember that you have lost the element of surprise in this battle. He knows how strong you are now and he will compensate."

"Yeah," Trunks sighed. He still wasn't sure if he should even fight Frieza. It just wasn't his fate to do so. He shrugged in an effort to appear calm, but he came across indifferent as he continued, "That's alright though. I'll still win."

Vegeta scowled and stared at his son. In his mind, it was only a matter of time before Trunks fought Frieza, in a battle that should have been his. It had taken him a little time, but he was starting to accept the fact that if he wasn't going to be the one to destroy Frieza, then it was only appropriate that it was his son who did the job.

Still, Vegeta couldn't help but feel anxious, and that wasn't something he was accustomed to feeling. He knew Frieza well, and knew that the tyrant had seen Trunks' transformation. He was always watching the Trials and this past one would have been no different. Vegeta knew that Frieza would try to do something to even the field with his son, but he didn't have the first clue as to what the tyrant might do. And between not knowing how Frieza was going to approach the battle, and his son thinking the fight wasn't even going to be worth his time, Vegeta felt like killing someone. Literally.

Finally, Vegeta just shook his head, turned, and walked away. He rolled his eyes in annoyance when he felt the boy start to follow him. The kid rarely left him in peace. He had no doubt that he would have killed the boy by now if it was anyone else, but since Trunks was still stronger than him, there was little Vegeta could do except reluctantly tolerate the boy's presence.

"How did you manage to actually get my sword out without me feeling it?" Trunks asked as he fell into step next to his father.

Vegeta sighed, before blandly replying, "I simply removed it from your holster. It's not my fault you are oblivious to your surroundings."

"I'm not _that_ oblivious," Trunks snorted.

"Could have fooled me," Vegeta grumbled, before glancing over at Trunks. "Don't you have your _friends_ to go visit?" he sneered.

"Naji and the guys have us on target. I already checked in with them."

"You know that we'll have to kill them sooner or later, yes?"

"Aw, come on. They've been helpful. You know it. They saved your life, remember?"

Vegeta frowned at him and then looked away as they approached the room the prince had unofficially claimed as his own. He didn't enjoy talking about that entire fiasco. Thinking about how weak he had been with Frieza was enough to get his blood flowing with rage. He was reminded of his humiliation every day when he got dressed and didn't see his tail, even though he could still feel it like a missing limb. Somehow, come hell or high water, Vegeta vowed to make Frieza pay for that, and so much more.

"Just keep them out of my way, or I'll rip all their heads off. And you stay out of my way too, boy, or you'll get the same treatment," Vegeta snarled, not even looking back at Trunks as he disappeared into the room.

Trunks smiled a little. He was in a pretty good mood, and not even his father's sour disposition could bring him down. They had been in space a long time, but they were close to Earth now, which was fantastic for him. It was going to be great being back on his little blue planet.

Not to mention, it was nice spending so much time with his father. As soon as Vegeta was able to stand on his own again, they had been fighting every day. Sometimes, Vegeta taught Trunks what the teenager had always considered dirty tactics in fighting, as the prince attempted to teach his son that there was no honor in fighting clean if it meant that you would lose.

Most of the time though, they simply sparred. No ki, no Super Saiyan transformations, just pure skill and technique. Trunks always won, mostly because Vegeta became livid each time Trunks held back and tried to work at his father's level. Trunks didn't understand that too much, but he did as his father wanted. To his amazement, the harder he knocked Vegeta down, the faster the prince would get back up and the more violent his attacks became. Even though Trunks always won the spars in the end, it was becoming increasingly more difficult to do so without transforming into a Super Saiyan. Vegeta was becoming faster and stronger by continuously pushing himself to keep up with Trunks, and he had a relentless drive to better himself as a warrior that Trunks had severely underestimated.

As time continued to pass, Trunks started to understand his father better on a more personal level. Strength and power mattered to his father, but not as much as the unwavering pride that he wore like a chip on his shoulder. Vegeta was a mean bastard, a fact that was only confirmed the longer Trunks spent with him, but the teenager was starting to see that there was a lot more to his father than met the eye. Trunks often found himself awake when everyone else was asleep, wondering what his father might have been like if Frieza hadn't entered his life. It did well to take his mind off how screwed up this timeline had become, and what that meant for Earth now.

Trunks entered the main control room, where the other aliens were. He was grateful for their presence. As much as he loved getting to know his father more, it was nice to have others around who weren't as difficult to talk to. After their mutual distrust of each other passed, he found the aliens on the ship to be nice and friendly. Naturally, they steered clear of Vegeta, but it was useful to have them there nonetheless. They knew more about the ship than both Vegeta and Trunks. And of course, Trunks felt indebted for their help with saving his father's life, even if Vegeta didn't share that sentiment.

"Hey, kid. Come here, look at this."

Trunks walked over to where Naji was standing at the controls with another alien, who handed him a sheet of paper. The teenager took it and looked it over, but he couldn't make out a thing on there. It looked like a bizarre mapping of different shapes and lines to him.

"What is this?" he finally asked.

"Come on, Trunks. Still can't read Galactic Standard?" Naji asked him with a smirk.

"Nah. I've been trying to figure it out but it doesn't make a heck of a lot of sense to me."

"Look, this is where we are now," Naji patiently explained to him, pointing to what looked like a cross. "Planet Earth is in this part of the south sector," he said, his blue finger shifting over. "Now this planet _here_ is not far from Earth. It's called Pyris. We can go there to restock on supplies and food for you and your father, and we'll stay there while you two continue to Earth."

Trunks nodded, following along. "That sounds fine. How much longer do you think?"

"Not long at all. We should make it to Pyris within several hours, which is good because the ship is running out of supplies. And we would rather your father not kill us and eat us, if we could help it."

Trunks laughed, "Oh, come on, he wouldn't ever do that."

Naji and his alien companion exchanged a look. The alien muttered in a foreign language, " _It's like he doesn't even know his own father."_

" _Aye,"_ Naji nodded in agreement, before looking back at Trunks. "Kid, believe me when I tell you that we'll all be a little happier getting away from Vegeta."

Trunks nodded, though he couldn't help his disappointment. No matter how much insight he got on his father, he couldn't erase what Vegeta had done. Nor could he guarantee that his father wouldn't revert to type in a heartbeat if provided the opportunity. Still, he was steadfast in his belief that his father could change. He resisted the surge of hope inside of him that maybe Vegeta already _had_ changed for the better, just by not slaughtering the aliens in front of him even though he was able.

He looked up, and saw the clear distrust in the aliens looking back at him. Distrust that was aimed at his father. Trunks sighed.

"It's alright," he finally said. "I understand. If that's the planet you guys want to stay on, that'll work. I'll go let him know what's going on."

He handed them back the piece of paper and then walked out. The ship was deceiving in its size. When he'd first run in trying to get Vegeta help, he hadn't expected it to be so large. And he definitely hadn't expected the advanced technology that the ship used. He'd never seen anything like it.

Without even knocking, Trunks walked into the room Vegeta had claimed as his. It was the lab turned rudimentary hospital while the prince recovered from his near fatal injuries sustained at the hands of Frieza. As time passed, it simply became Vegeta's room just out of convenience.

Vegeta cast Trunks a dark, upside down glare when he simply strolled in. The prince was doing one-handed hand stand push-ups to pass the time. If he wasn't sleeping or sparring with Trunks, then he passed the time either meditating or working out. He enjoyed the time alone to think over things – he therefore did not appreciate this interruption.

"This had _better_ be good, boy," Vegeta bit out, continuing his methodical push-ups without missing a beat.

"Well, we're almost there," Trunks said. "We're going to make a quick stop on Planet Pyris to stock up on some stuff, and then we'll go to Earth."

"Hn." Vegeta dropped down and landed on his feet, before casting Trunks a suspicious look. "Why there?"

"It's on the way and Naji and the guys want to stay there."

"How long?"

"Not long, maybe a few hours."

"Fine," Vegeta said gruffly, turning and giving Trunks his back. He wasn't opposed to some fresh air. The ship they were on reeked of the Colds. The sooner he could get off it, the better. "You can leave now."

"Alright…"

Vegeta turned his head a little when he heard the disappointment in Trunks' voice. He instinctively sneered in disgust. Who the fuck knew what that boy expected from him. He sure didn't, nor did he care. Vegeta dropped back down onto the floor, before lifting himself into another handstand. He resumed his push-ups with the other hand this time, as his mind wandered back to the topic not involving Frieza that consumed his thoughts on a regular basis: how he could also achieve the legendary state of the Super Saiyan. Trunks wasn't that much help in this aspect. They had only discussed it once, and it had not gone so well…

" _How did you do it at such a young age?"_

" _When my master - my friend - when he died at the hands of those monsters, and I found him afterwards, it was a horrible experience. I was so angry, at him, at myself, at everything. It just happened."_

" _It just happened?"_

" _Yeah. I couldn't control it. I didn't even realize it was happening."_

" _Hn. Typical."_

" _What?"_

" _Of course you would have an emotional response. You are soft. Your fighting is dictated by your ridiculous feelings and emotions."_

" _Look, you wanted to know, so I told you. That's how it happened."_

" _Why didn't you tell me sooner?"_

" _I thought you would be angry."_

" _Angry?"_

" _Yeah. You know, because I'm stronger than you. I didn't want to make you mad or anything-"_

" _You know what makes me angry? It's not that you're a Super Saiyan. You have my blood, the royal blood of a Saiyan Elite. Of course you have the ability. No, what pisses me off is that you just stood there and watched while Frieza broke me in half, and you didn't do a goddamned thing. You could have killed him right there, but you didn't. Why?"_

_Silence._

" _That's what I thought. You're spineless. All the power in the universe through your veins, at your fingertips, right at your disposal, and you didn't use it when you should have. You should have killed him when you had the chance, you imbecile!"_

" _You don't understand-"_

" _Damn right I don't understand. Now get the hell out of my sight. You disgust me."_

Irritated and now officially off his game, Vegeta dropped down again. He sat down cross-legged against the wall and sighed, running one hand down his face. Until he made his transformation, Trunks was the best shot they had at defeating Frieza.

He just hoped the kid was up for it.

* * *

Trunks took in a deep breath of fresh air on the new planet. It was muggy and dark, but damn, it was nice to be off that ship. They'd been in there for months, it felt like. He stretched his arms out a little bit before looking up ahead where his father was standing at the edge of the cliff where they landed the ship.

Vegeta was wishing he had a scouter as he took in the smell of this particular atmosphere. He glanced over to his side as Trunks came to stand by him.

"Do you smell that?"

Trunks sniffed, and shook his head. "I don't smell anything. Why, what do you smell?"

Vegeta looked down over the edge of the cliff, staying silent. He thought he caught a familiar smell of burning flesh, the clear indicator of an ongoing purge, but he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. There were small cities down there. He could make out some aliens moving about. Why, then, was he catching the smell of death in the air?

"Nothing," Vegeta finally answered, frowning in thought. Something was wrong. His instincts were telling him so. He glanced up at the night sky and studied the stars, his eyes narrowing as Trunks watched him curiously.

"What do you guys think? Nice and simple little planet, huh?"

"Yeah," Trunks answered a little absent-mindedly, as he wondered what his father was thinking about. He glanced back at the aliens who were slowly climbing out of the ship. "You guys been here before?"

"Of course, Trunks," Naji politely answered. "Pyris is my home planet."

"It's a piece of shit planet," Vegeta said matter-of-factly, his back still to the now-offended aliens. He lowered his gaze and peered down at the cities below. "Let's just get on with this."

Vegeta led the way down as they all climbed down the side of the cliff. When Trunks asked why they couldn't just fly into town and see where to get the materials they needed, Vegeta ignored him. The truth was that he had no idea who was on this planet, and he felt severely uninformed without his scouter to tell him where the highest power levels were. Trunks had shown him how to sense ki, but he was still not fully comfortable with the technique. Coupled with the fact that there was one extremely powerful and influential alien tyrant out there who wanted their heads, Vegeta thought it was wise not to draw attention to themselves. Everyone silently followed his lead until they were finally in the first city.

Vegeta raised a fist and everyone suddenly stopped walking. The prince cocked his head to one side and stood that way for several moments.

"Alright," Vegeta finally said, turning around to face the group. "You blue freaks. You know this planet. Go find the proper supplies for the ship and the right amount of food. Meet us back in the ship within the hour, or I purge this entire planet, and save each of you for last. So don't suddenly develop courage and try something cute with me. Understand?"

None of the aliens looked very happy, but they nodded and walked off to do as they were told. Trunks watched as they walked into the city, chatting amongst themselves. The further away they got, the clearer it became that they were genuinely happy to be home.

"Come here, kid."

Trunks instantly jogged over to his father. "What is it?"

"Someone is on this planet," Vegeta bluntly announced, unconsciously clenching and unclenching his gloved hands into fists. "And they're close."

"What?"

"I can smell them."

"…What?" Trunks repeated, confused as he stared at his father. He couldn't help but wonder if maybe he'd given his father a concussion with their earlier sparring session. He was making no sense. "We're barely on the fringes of this city and you mean to tell me that you can smell-"

"There it is. You hear that?" Vegeta asked, cocking his head to one side again as he tried zeroing in on the sound.

"Hear what?"

"Scouters," Vegeta growled, both fists clenched tightly now. Sweat started forming on his brow as his brain worked rapidly. Only the Cold army wore scouters. They were in the south sector. No one in the Cold army was down in the south sector. Frieza had barely started getting his feet wet in the east sector. There was no reason for anyone to be there.

Unless they were looking for him and Trunks, of course.

"I don't hear anything-"

"Shut up and keep your power down. We're staying on the ground for this. Follow me," Vegeta ordered.

Trunks couldn't get another word in before Vegeta took off running in the shadows of the city. Trunks immediately went after him, though he got more than a few dirty glares from Vegeta over how loud he was being. Trunks took a deep breath and tried his best to make his steps light like his father's, but it was harder than it looked. The ground wasn't anything he'd ever walked on before - it almost felt like patched together glass. How Vegeta could walk on it so lightly, Trunks had no idea.

Vegeta rounded a corner out of sight with Trunks on his heels. Trunks nearly ran into him when Vegeta came to an abrupt stop. The prince shot him a look that could have killed, and Trunks gave him a silent apologetic shrug in response. Vegeta rolled his eyes, before motioning with his head to follow him. Trunks did, and after a few steps, a horrible feeling of déjà vu washed over him as he finally smelled what his father had picked up almost half a mile away.

Vegeta leaned up against the stone wall of a building, where he became completely blanketed by the cover of darkness. Trunks followed his example.

 _Do you sense anyone?_ Vegeta asked him using his mind.

Trunks tried sensing someone out, but then shook his head. _No one except the natives with their low ki._ He frowned and then added- _But I can smell it now._

_Fire._

_And flesh._

_There's the light there. See it?_

Trunks looked and did see the flickering of flames behind the next building. The coloring was strange, a mixture of blue and red. _Yeah, I see it now._

Slowly and quietly, they both approached. It was then that Trunks finally saw how his father always managed to sneak up on him. The man was completely silent and methodical in his movements. It was clear he'd done this many times before.

Vegeta stopped at the edge of the building. He squatted down and Trunks leaned over him, both of them trying to listen. They could hear voices now.

 _Who is it?_ Trunks asked telepathically, glancing down at his father. _Do you recognize them?_

Vegeta raised a fist to his mouth. He listened closely. He heard what they were talking about in a language he understood. He then heard a woman start screaming. He scowled and sent back- _I don't, but they're definitely Frieza's men._

_How do you know?_

Vegeta cast him a look of disgust, before shaking his head and standing up. _I know. I make it my business to know,_ he sneered mentally. _Unlike you._

_I guess. Do you know how many there are?_

The screaming suddenly intensified. Without a word of warning, Vegeta took off around the corner of the building. At once, blasts started firing. Trunks ran over, but he was immediately distracted by the sight of a pile of burning bodies right there in the dark alley. His stomach churned with impending nausea at the gruesome scene. He looked over and saw more dead bodies on the ground, dead by his father's hand in a matter of seconds. Trunks recognized their armor and their scouters. Looking up, he managed to see his father haul the last soldier, a purple scaled alien with completely white eyes, off an alien woman he'd been close to raping.

Vegeta kicked him hard in the side of the head, shattering the scouter to pieces. The soldier yelped in surprise, crawling back before scrambling up to his feet as he quickly yanked his trousers up.

"Vegeta," he gasped in realization, only now seeming to notice that everyone who was with him was dead. His bravado was melting by the second.

"You know of me. Good. Then you know I'm not patient, so answer this. What the hell are you doing here?" Vegeta demanded, raising his hand towards the alien in warning while Trunks gently helped the female alien sit up behind him. She was a dark blue like Naji, and was mostly just shaken up, to Trunks' relief.

The soldier's bravado was suddenly back, as he scoffed. "I don't answer to _you-"_

"Wrong answer."

Vegeta fired a ki blast that hit the soldier right in the crotch. The alien howled in agony and crumpled to the ground. He rolled over and screamed into the dirt in pain, but that was short-lived. Vegeta kicked him hard in the ribs and sent him crashing into the next building. The alien soldier was writhing in pain, and quickly found himself pinned down by Vegeta's boot.

"Last chance to live," Vegeta taunted, leaning down closer. "What are you doing here, weakling?"

"Frieza s-sent us," the soldier practically whimpered. Trunks frowned as he helped the alien woman stand. He motioned for her to run away. She didn't need to be told twice.

"Why to _this_ planet?" Vegeta snarled, driving his boot mercilessly into the soldier's throat until he saw blood being coughed up. Only then did he loosen the pressure. And it was only by a little bit. The soldier coughed roughly and tried getting Vegeta's boot off him. "I've got all fucking day to get answers out of you, and believe me, I will make your death as slow and as miserable as possible if you don't start-"

"Scouting nearby planets," the soldier spat out.

"What?"

"He kn-knew you—heading to Earth-"

Trunks and Vegeta both practically yelled, "What!"

"Hacked into ship's system. Sent everyone who was left to all the nearby planets." He smiled a bloody smile. "You can run, but ya can't hide, V-Vegeta. Gonna purge all these planets, Earth too, til you ain't got no choice but to fight Frieza and die-"

"Only one dying here is you, fool," Vegeta growled, raising his knee up chest-level, his boot right over the alien's face. He then brought his foot down hard.

Trunks looked away so he wouldn't see. While he had grown more comfortable with the violence of the time he was in, there were just some things he wasn't ever going to feel comfortable seeing. He finally looked back when he felt Vegeta walking over to one of the other fallen men. The prince crouched down and took the soldier's red scouter off. He turned it over a bit in his hands, inspecting its condition. He frowned and cursed under his breath as Trunks came to stand right next to him. The teenager inspected the blood now staining Vegeta's dark blue trousers from the knees down, as well as his previously clean white boots.

"You could have used your ki and spared yourself the mess, you know," Trunks told him.

"I gave that piece of shit what he deserved," Vegeta said, no remorse in his voice.

"Because of what he was going to do to that girl?"

Vegeta stayed quiet for a few seconds, and then changed the topic. "They know where we're going," he said, more to himself than to Trunks as he slipped the scouter on.

"Yeah. Seems like it," Trunks said with a frown as Vegeta stood up.

"Their ships must have gotten faster for them to already be here," Vegeta reasoned, his dark eyes taking in the dead men on the ground, before he glanced over at the raging fire and the bodies burning in it. His mind was raging just as much as the flames, trying to piece together what Frieza was planning. He knew about Trunks' strength; if he was trying to draw them out, it was because he felt like he could defeat Trunks. His earlier anxiety came back, tightening in his stomach.

Finally, Vegeta dusted off his armor, shook his head, and mused out loud, "We cannot go to Earth anymore. This is a trap. We're being set up for something, but I don't know what."

"So what are you saying?"

"Earth is probably infested by now. Frieza might even be there waiting-"

"If Frieza is there, then we HAVE to go!" Trunks cut in with a sense of urgency that got Vegeta's attention.

"If Frieza is on Earth, there is no doubt that the planet has already been purged and adequately prepared to tilt a battle in his favor. It would not be smart to walk right into-"

"No. We're going to Earth. Right now."

Vegeta turned to face Trunks directly, more curious than angry over Trunks' challenging his authority. He crossed his arms and stared hard at the teenager.

"What is your investment with this planet, boy?" he demanded.

"I-" Trunks started, before falling into thought as he quickly tried thinking of what to say. Finally, he decided on a strategy. "I just don't want to run away from Frieza, like cowards."

Vegeta lowered his arms and squared his shoulders, his gaze darkening. "Are you calling me a coward?"

"No. All I'm saying is there's no point to avoiding him. He wants us, so let's go find him."

"You aren't ready to fight Frieza."

"Yes, I am, and I'll prove it. I'm not going to run from him, and neither should you."

Vegeta growled low in his throat, before snarling, "I don't run from anyone, boy, and don't you forget it." He turned and marched off, missing the relief on Trunks' face. "We are going to Earth at once to settle this."

They finally got back to the ship, where the other aliens were already waiting for them. Vegeta passed Trunks a look, and the teenager stepped forward to talk to the aliens over what supplies they found. Vegeta hung back and observed as the aliens showed Trunks where the fuel reserves were. He turned around and gave them his back while he stood on the ramp that led down to the planet they were on.

"I have no idea how they could have hacked into the system," Naji told Trunks. "I just know the basics about this stuff. That's a whole deeper level of understanding, though Frieza has the best technical staff in the universe. We should have probably anticipated it. I'm sorry that we didn't."

"Yeah," Trunks said with a nod, before smiling appreciatively. "That's alright though. Thanks for your help."

"Don't mention it. Good luck."

"Thanks."

Vegeta watched from the corner of his eye as the aliens hesitantly walked past him down the ramp.

"Come on. We gotta go," Trunks called out to him.

Vegeta stayed silent, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the aliens who were walking away.

"Father, don't do it," Trunks pleaded, just as Vegeta was about to raise his hand.

The prince clenched his hands into fists, grinding his teeth as resentment washed over him. His natural authority was granted by physical superiority. The boy was stronger than him though, and so there was little Vegeta could do here to challenge him.

Though that wasn't going to last forever, Vegeta resolved with fierce determination. He then quietly turned around without killing the retreating aliens, walking up the ramp and past Trunks without giving the kid a glance. Trunks watched him and sighed, before pulling up the ramp.

For better or worse, it was time to go home.

* * *

They were close to Earth now. Trunks was feeling excited, anxious, and a little sick. He and his father had eaten the meat that Naji and his fellow aliens had brought on board, and Trunks was disgusted as his father ravenously tore into the raw meat, bloody and all. After some back and forth banter about balls dropping and learning how to eat like a man, Trunks was finally goaded into tasting some of the raw meat. It was disgusting and almost made him vomit. His father got a good, hearty laugh out of it, but all Trunks got out of that experience was a bad stomachache.

Vegeta was sitting down in the control room now behind Trunks as he tinkered with the scouter he'd picked up on Pyris. It was a newer model than any he'd seen before, confirming his suspicions that the soldiers he'd run into were rooks. Frieza was already "recruiting" new men to fill out his ranks. Vegeta scowled as he stared at the advanced circuitry of the scouter.

"You figure that thing out yet?"

"Yes. That's clearly why I am still staring at it," Vegeta remarked sarcastically. He touched a piece of the circuit with his tool and immediately pulled his hand back when voltage shot through and shocked him.

"Lemme see. Maybe I can do something with it."

Vegeta scoffed as Trunks approached him. "What the hell do you know about scouters?"

"Not much," Trunks admitted as he squatted down in front of Vegeta. "But I know a couple things about electronics."

"Hn."

Vegeta handed Trunks the scouter. The teenager took it, and studied it closely, his blue eyes narrowed in concentration while Vegeta waited impatiently.

"Well?" he finally snapped. He growled and snatched the scouter out of Trunks' hands, not even giving the teenager a chance to respond. "Talking about, you know electronics. You don't know anything. Stop wasting my goddamned time-"

"No, wait," Trunks said, snatching the scouter back. "I think it's right here. See?" he showed Vegeta the scouter circuitry and pointed to a part the prince hadn't tried.

"…I was going to try that next," Vegeta grumbled, snatching the scouter back. Trunks smiled and stood up, going back over to the controls as his father muttered curses under his breath.

Vegeta snapped the scouter shut once he synchronized it properly, and then slipped it on. He watched as the light flickered on while it attempted to make a link with his old scouter. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared. After a few seconds, the scouter flashed that no link could be made.

As soon as it flashed the message, Trunks whispered, "No. That can't be right."

Vegeta looked up. "What is it?"

Trunks didn't answer. He was standing at the controls, leaning over them as he stared through the glass window out into space. Vegeta got up to his feet and marched over.

"I asked you a question," he growled, standing next to Trunks and looking at the controls. Everything seemed on target. He glanced up at the glass window. Nothing seemed out of place to him. He looked back at his son, who had visibly paled. "What is it?" he demanded again.

"It's not there," Trunks mumbled, looking like he was in a complete daze.

"What's not there?" Vegeta pressed.

"Earth. It's not there."

Vegeta rechecked the coordinates, and then looked up. The kid was right. The planet was supposed to be right in front of them now, but all he saw was space dust, a couple of distant planets, and a sun past them.

"That can't be right," Vegeta said, not even realizing he was quoting Trunks verbatim. "This ship would never have calculated the coordinates if there was no planet there."

"Unless the planet was destroyed after it got the coordinates," Trunks said, leaning heavily over the control panel. His knees suddenly felt weak.

"Nonsense," Vegeta scoffed. "The ship would have informed us immediately. It is constantly recalculating the coordinates to ensure that the trajectory is correct."

"But you fucking see it, don't you? It's not there!"

Vegeta stared out the window, ignoring his son as he peered closer. Trunks turned around and leaned back against the panel, bringing one hand up to cover his eyes as he tried his very best to keep it together and not have a mental breakdown in front of his father. Completely oblivious of what this meant to Trunks, Vegeta tilted his head to one side and crossed his arms over his chest, staring at the stretch of space in front of them.

"Huh. How bizarre. That _can't_ be right."

"It is right-"

"No," Vegeta said firmly. "Something is not right here. Look."

Trunks frowned and turned around, "What do you mean?"

Vegeta pointed. "The system is symmetric."

"…What-"

"You see, there is a pattern of constellations here," Vegeta said, levitating into the air so he could point right on the glass. "And it is mirrored exactly here in reverse." His hand started moving as he traced the dividing line, slowly drawing out a spherical shape. "All across here. The constellations are symmetric around this edge, and then there is a hole here in the middle. I've never once seen anything like this in all my time of space travel. This simply cannot be right."

Trunks blinked as he stared at what his father was talking about. He would have never even noticed such a thing.

"It's a shield?" he asked hopefully.

"A shield, or a mirror of some kind," Vegeta said, crossing his arms again as he descended back to the floor. "The planet is still there, but somehow, someone managed to hide it well," he said, unable to keep the surprise out of his voice. "Anyone who couldn't tell would turn back."

"Guess they don't want us to land there, huh?"

"Yes, but who is _they_ is the question-"

Both of them were suddenly knocked to the floor as an explosion violently rocked the ship. Alarms and red lights started flashing as the ship picked up dangerous speed.

"What's happening!"

"What do you mean, what's fucking happening? We're under attack, you idiot-!"

Another explosion hit more violently than before, making Vegeta and Trunks both instinctively cover their heads as the space ship started being torn apart.

"We have to get out of this ship!" Trunks yelled over the alarms.

"We don't know how close we are to the planet!" Vegeta yelled back, somehow managing to get back up to his feet. His scouter suddenly exploded on his face, making him fall back in shock as Trunks ascended to his Super Saiyan state in a matter of seconds, the golden light exploding in the control room. Not having seen the transformation since the Trials, Vegeta stared in stunned amazement at the powerhouse that was his son, completely forgetting for the moment the situation they found themselves in.

"We have to take the chance!" Trunks yelled, going over to his father. He tried grabbing Vegeta to lift him and clear right out of the ship, when Vegeta roughly shoved him away.

"I don't need your help!" Vegeta shouted at him, getting back up to his feet.

"NOW ISN'T THE TIME FOR THIS!" Trunks screamed at him. "WE HAVE TO-"

Trunks abruptly stopped and turned back to the glass, his senses picking up something coming right at them. Vegeta followed his line of sight and frowned. They both stared at what looked like space and constellations.

Vegeta finally felt it too, and growled, "What in the-?"

Trunks suddenly tackled Vegeta down to the floor right as a powerful, spiraled, blue energy beam blasted through the glass, a beam that would have killed his father instantly had it made contact. That was all he had time to do before the ship finally crash landed, and then viciously exploded, lost in a sea of metal, fire, and smoke.

Vegeta stirred sometime later and groaned. He slowly opened his eyes which were stinging with smoke. He was buried under metal pieces. Grumbling to himself that he was tired of this shit always happening to him, he went to dig his way out before hissing as a raw pain ripped through him, his hand going to his stomach. When he brought it up, he could see that his white glove was stained with blood.

 _Trunks?_ he weakly sent out. He didn't hear anything back, and slowly started shoving the metal pieces off him.

 _Great. Just great. I knew we shouldn't have come to this fucking planet,_ he irritably thought to himself, emerging from the debris at last. He coughed roughly, on his hands and knees, only now becoming aware of the blood running down his face. He stubbornly wiped it away, squinting up at the sudden bright light of the sun.

 _Trunks!_ he sent out with more force than before.

 _Yeah. I'm here,_ Trunks' weak and pained voice sounded in Vegeta's mind. _You alright?_

 _Never been better,_ Vegeta sent back, wincing in pain as he tried getting up to his feet.

He was immediately forced back down to his knees by a strong hand on his shoulder.

"I don't think so. You better stay down. I don't want to be the one that has to hurt you, but I will if I have to," an unfamiliar voice said from behind him. Vegeta tensed when he felt what could only be a gun or rifle of some kind press up right behind his head.

"Hey, look," Vegeta gasped out, falling forward on his hands and knees again and squeezing his eyes shut. "I'm not here for trouble, alright? I can't even see right now. I need help," he pleaded, as his right hand subtly closed around a small, sharp, ragged shard of metal.

"Yeah, well we'll see about-"

Vegeta suddenly spun around, knocking the rifle out of the way with his left hand. In one swift motion, he got up to his feet and buried the shard of metal right into the man's throat with his right hand. The bald man sputtered and staggered back, and would have collapsed had Vegeta not phased in right behind him. Vegeta wrapped his left arm around his enemy's throat from behind, wedging the shard in further as the smaller man tried in vain to escape.

"Krillin! NO!" a young voice screamed. Vegeta immediately raised his right hand out over Krillin's shoulder, forcing him to turn with him like a shield. He saw a young and horrified boy watching the gruesome scene with wide eyes, holding his own rifle that seemed way too big for him.

Vegeta offered him a maniacal smirk, his hand starting to glow with ki.

"He'll bleed out in precisely twenty four and a half seconds," Vegeta taunted, tightening his grip mercilessly around Krillin's throat. Krillin could only make gurgling sounds as he desperately tried to claw off Vegeta's arm which was quickly staining red with his blood, but it was an iron rod around his throat. Vegeta hardly noticed his struggling as he continued, "I suggest you get lost, kid, unless you want some of the same."

"LET HIM GO!" the boy screamed, dropping his rifle as an explosion of blue ki suddenly surrounded him in his rage. Vegeta raised an eyebrow in surprise, eyeing the boy up and down. He was a small thing, but he was incredibly powerful.

Vegeta heard a distant, "Gohan, don't!" He looked over out of the corner of his eye, trying to get a gauge on how many of them there were, when Gohan suddenly charged him.

Vegeta immediately released Krillin and could barely form a proper defense against the boy, partly due to his own injuries slowing him down, but mostly due to the shock that a young boy would dare attack him head on. Gohan had him reeling backwards when Vegeta finally regained his composure, catching the boy by surprise with a hard knee to the stomach that instantly dropped Gohan to the wreckage. Not giving the boy a chance to recover, Vegeta kicked him hard in the ribs, knocking the air right out of him and making Gohan yell out in pain.

Stumbling back, Vegeta spit out a mouthful of blood, using every bit of willpower not to double over in pain as his vision blurred. He tried desperately to regroup when Trunks suddenly reappeared out of nowhere on his side. The teenager effortlessly blocked a ki blast that was aimed for Vegeta, sending it off into the distance.

"Hn. Took you, long enough," Vegeta coughed out while Trunks looked Gohan over in concern as the boy struggled to get up. Trunks then looked up to see that they were surrounded. He didn't recognize everyone, but he could guess from what Bulma had told him.

Trunks wiped the blood from his own face, and then raised his hands in a peaceful gesture. He didn't want to show off his strength if he didn't have to.

"Look, guys. We're not here to hurt any of you-"

"You almost killed our friend!" a shirtless three-eyed man yelled as he hovered in midair.

"We're not letting you take our planet!" a long-haired warrior with a scar down his face shouted as he knelt next to Krillin, who was somehow miraculously sitting up. Vegeta stared at him in shock. How the hell was he alive?

Trunks pleaded, "No, please, just listen to me! You guys don't understand-"

Vegeta leaned back-to-back against Trunks, turning his head a little. "You take three-eyes and scarface, and I'll take the boy and the Namek," he ordered.

"No!" Trunks hissed, looking over his shoulder to see that Piccolo was in midair, eyes locked with Vegeta. The Saiyan sneered up at him in response. Trunks felt his father's body heat start to skyrocket behind him as Vegeta's ki and power began to surge.

"Everyone, altogether!" Piccolo boomed out. Almost immediately, all the Z-fighters followed suit and started to power up as well as they prepared to fight back.

"On my mark," Vegeta snarled. Trunks growled and was about to power up as well to his full capacity, to neutralize the volatile situation before it got further out of hand. His words were not working; if they saw how strong he really was, then he could force them to listen.

He was literally under two seconds from transforming into a Super Saiyan, when a new voice sounded out.

"STOP! Back down, everyone, now!"

Everyone looked over as a new figure emerged. Trunks could feel everyone's power level dwindle a bit in response, though it was clear that the Earth warriors were all prepared to fight on the drop of a dime. Vegeta, however, powered down completely, staring blankly at the newcomer. After a few tense seconds, the prince was finally the one who broke the silence.

"Raditz?"


	15. Chasing Destiny

Raditz stared at Vegeta, hardly believing his eyes. He had thought for sure that his prince was dead. His gaze shifted over to Trunks and his eyes narrowed, before he looked over the rest of the destroyed ship. Finally, he walked over to them. He glanced up at Piccolo and gave him a motion to back down. The Namek growled; he would never get used to taking orders from the Saiyan, but he nodded to the others to let Raditz handle the newcomers.

Raditz spared his nephew a brief glance. The kid was sitting now, wincing as he rubbed his stomach. Raditz would have berated him for his foolish charge, but he was beyond impressed that the boy had briefly held his own with Vegeta.

He turned his attention to the prince, gave him a nod of respect, and then asked, "Is it only you two?" Vegeta nodded, wiping the blood off his face. Raditz frowned. "Where's Nappa?"

"Dead," Vegeta informed him bluntly.

"Frieza?"

Vegeta shook his head, and put one forearm on Trunks' back as he leaned against him a little, his other arm going protectively around his stomach. He looked over to where Piccolo was descending. They were still surrounded, and he didn't like it.

"You've aligned yourself with these weaklings, Raditz?" Vegeta spat out in disgust.

Raditz hesitated in answering, before finally saying, "Let's get you both looked at. That was a hell of a landing. Then we can talk-in private," he added, glancing at Piccolo with a scowl.

Vegeta grunted his agreement to the plan, as Trunks spoke up, "Where is Kakarot?"

Raditz' gaze darkened as he looked over at Trunks. "Like I _said,_ " he sneered angrily. "We will talk in private."

"Raditz," Vegeta barked harshly, drawing Raditz' attention. "This boy's name is Trunks, and he is my son. That makes him a first class Saiyan Elite. You will show him the proper respect from now on." Vegeta left the threat behind his words unspoken. Trunks couldn't help but smile a little.

"What?" Raditz asked blankly, looking over at Trunks in disbelief. He studied the teenager in amazement, finally seeing his resemblance to Vegeta. So his little slip when they were having drinks hadn't been a lie. "How is that possible?" he asked in bewilderment, looking back at Vegeta in clear shock.

"Don't ask," Vegeta grumbled, looking down at himself. He gingerly removed his arm from his stomach, only to see his arm soaked in blood. Raditz frowned as he saw Vegeta's injuries. He turned around and scanned over the warriors standing around them, before his gaze finally settled on Yamcha.

"Do you have any more Senzu beans?" he demanded.

"No. I gave Krillin our last one," Yamcha said as Krillin stood up next to him. The smaller man rubbed at his throat and looked over at Vegeta warily.

"Raditz," Piccolo's voice sounded out. Raditz sighed through his nose in exasperation and looked over at the Namek who was glaring at him.

"What do you want, green man?" Raditz demanded peevishly.

"Who are these two?" Piccolo demanded, matching Raditz' tone. "You seem to know them."

"This is Vegeta. He is the Prince of all Saiyans. You will _all_ show him his due respect," Raditz growled, making eye contact with everyone who was there to make sure that he was clear. "And this," he said, looking back at Trunks, his eyes a mixture of bitterness and begrudged respect. "This is his… _son_ …Trunks. He is half-Saiyan but he is due respect as well, for being son of the prince. They are no threat to us."

Piccolo's antenna twitched in agitation as he looked Vegeta and Trunks over. He could barely pick up any ki from either of them now, but just a few moments ago when everyone had been powering up, he had been floored at the ki signature he sensed from the smaller Saiyan. He was hands down more powerful than Raditz, something which did not sit well with the Namek.

Finally, his gaze shifted down to his protégé.

"Gohan," he barked, startling the young boy. "Let's go back to our post."

Gohan scratched his head a little, before peering up at Raditz.

"Uncle Raditz?" he asked sheepishly.

"Go, kid," Raditz ordered, motioning with his chin to follow Piccolo. The little boy slowly got up and went over to get his weapon, before running over to Piccolo. It was only then that Vegeta noticed the boy had a tail.

"…Kakarot's son?" Vegeta asked, blinking in surprise.

Raditz smirked a little. "Yes. The boy has incredible potential."

"Hn," Vegeta grunted, leaning a little more against Trunks' back as his vision blurred. The teenager glanced over his shoulder in concern, but didn't move. This was about as much as his father would let him help him, so he stayed where he was. "Tell me there's a goddamned rejuvenation chamber on this planet," Vegeta grumbled irritably.

"No. But they have something better. Come on, we'll go get you two looked at until we can get more Senzu beans." Raditz looked over at Yamcha again and barked out, "You, human! Lead the way over to your woman so her medical staff can take care of the prince."

Yamcha, Krillin, Tien, and Chiaotzu all silently exchanged looks while Raditz walked up closer to Vegeta and Trunks.

"What are you guys thinking?" Tien asked quietly. Trunks gave them a subtle sidelong glance, listening intently.

"Well, Raditz _is_ on our side. And he knows them…" Yamcha quietly responded, his voice trailing off with indecision.

"Man, the smaller one, the one that's supposedly a prince. That guy is a one man wrecking crew," Krillin mumbled. "I never got the chance to shoot him with the D-NAD before he was all over me. Thank goodness for Senzu beans."

"Well, just be careful and keep an eye on them for now. Chiaotzu and I are going back to our post. Might as well stay on their good side since they don't _seem_ to be a threat right now."

"Yeah. I'll do the same," Krillin added with a nod. He spared Yamcha a glance, and smiled a little. "Good luck."

"Gee, thanks," Yamcha said, not looking at all enthused over being abandoned.

"Don't worry. Goku'll be back soon. He'll know what to do."

Yamcha nodded, and swallowed heavily as his friends took to the air. He looked back over to see that the Saiyans were all arguing now. The truth was that he _did,_ in fact, have a few more Senzu beans. But after seeing how easily Vegeta had nearly decapitated Krillin, he was keeping his mouth shut about it. So long as Raditz didn't find out, he was in the clear.

"I said, I can fucking fly on my own, you imbeciles!" Vegeta snarled at both Raditz and Trunks. "Just lead the goddamned way!"

"Alright," Trunks gave in with a sigh. He reached up and rubbed at his head a little. He had a headache, and a nasty gash on his scalp that was reddening his hair from the crash. The impact had briefly knocked him out, and now he was drained. Needless to say, he wasn't in the mood to argue with his father.

"Fine then. Lead the way, human," Raditz ordered. Yamcha frowned but nodded. He turned around and took to the air. Raditz followed him, and then Vegeta, with Trunks bringing up the rear.

The teenager trailed his father closely, making sure he was alright and ready to come in if he wasn't. His thoughts though were soon drifting to his mother. If he could convince her that time travel was a real possibility, how long would it take her to build a new time machine? Was he being unrealistic? It had taken her years in his timeline, and that was with more advanced knowledge. But on the flip side, that was _also_ with them both trying their best to equip the surviving humans with weapons. Her efforts had definitely been sidetracked.

Well, he reasoned, if push came to shove, she did have a radar for locating the Dragon Balls.

Now he just had to convince her to let him use it…

About half an hour later, Yamcha landed in front of Capsule Corp. The Saiyans behind him landed soon afterwards. Trunks noted with some concern that there was blood trickling down the back of his father's neck. He had definitely taken the worst of that impact.

The teenager then glanced over at the domed building in front of him. In spite of everything, he smiled. The building was pristine compared to what still remained in his time. For the first time in a very long time, Trunks finally felt like he was home.

"Bulma!" Yamcha yelled out, approaching the building.

Vegeta bent over and rested his hands on his knees, wincing at the pain from doubling over as he tried getting his breath from the flight. Without the adrenaline of battle, he felt exhausted. Trunks came up next to him and put a comforting hand on his back when Vegeta growled. The prince straightened and batted his son's hand away, sneering at him in disgust before looking to Raditz.

"Where the hell are we?" he angrily demanded.

"This woman is the smartest and richest woman on the planet," Raditz informed him. "She's proven herself useful. She has a medical station that has become used to Saiyans. I've been there a couple of times, as well as Kakarot's boy. They'll treat your injuries efficiently and thoroughly."

"Hn."

"Yamcha!"

They all looked up as Bulma launched herself into her boyfriend's arms. Yamcha wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. She kissed him deeply, and Trunks cringed in disgust. Raditz cleared his throat as she finally pulled away from Yamcha.

"I was so worried about you guys!" Bulma told her boyfriend, sighing in relief. "I saw that the shield was breached and thought it was that creep Freezer or whatever his name is."

"Frieza," Raditz corrected in an irritated voice.

"Whatever," Bulma snapped at him, before finally looking over at the two newcomers. She raised an eyebrow curiously. "Who are these two?" she asked, looking Vegeta over first, and then looking at Trunks.

The teenager nodded politely to her, even though inside, his heart was aching at the sight of her. Bulma was sporting youthful bangs, her hair pulled back with a red bow. She was radiant. He had never seen his mother without the lines of worry and loss etched into her features. Seeing her now, so inexperienced with the pain and loss of his timeline, both pleased and saddened him.

He sighed deeply. He needed to find a way back home.

"This is Vegeta. He is the Saiyan Prince," Raditz said, gesturing to the prince who was staring at Bulma in a way that was making the beautiful heiress distinctly uncomfortable. "And this is Vegeta's son, Trunks."

Bulma blinked when she heard the teenager's name. She looked over at him in surprise, but he averted his gaze, blushing as he did.

"They both need medical attention at once," Raditz finished.

"You want me to let these two in when I don't even know who they are?" Bulma asked, glaring at Raditz. "What the hell do I look like? Your slave?"

Feeling the weight of Vegeta's stare only intensifying after her words, Bulma turned to glare at him too. Putting her hands on her waist, she leaned forward and snapped at him, "And just WHAT are you staring at, buster? You better take it easy, or you won't be getting ANY help from-"

Vegeta released an animalistic snarl from deep in his chest, right before he lunged himself at her. Bulma squealed in terror and fell back, landing sitting down, a feral Saiyan restrained less than a foot away from her now. Trunks had barely managed to grab his father around the waist in time to stop him from literally ripping his mother's throat out.

"Whoa, easy, take it easy," Trunks said soothingly, trying his best to calm his father. Truth be told, Trunks' heart was racing. Vegeta might have come to respect him, and perhaps even accept him as his son, but the man's temper was still volatile. Once again, he felt a feeling of dread over this situation that he couldn't quite shake.

"Fucking bitch," Vegeta seethed almost rabidly, letting Trunks pull him back only because he was too drained to fight the boy. "Disrespect me again and I'll rip your fucking tongue right out of your mouth, before I take your goddamned head off!"

"Take it easy," Trunks said again, feeling very much like he was restraining a wild animal.

Bulma swallowed heavily, now hiding behind Yamcha (who was just as scared as she was). She saw no bluffing in Vegeta's crazed eyes.

"Well," Raditz said, not able to help his smirk. "Now that we got introductions out of the way. Vegeta and Trunks need medical attention. The faster we get on with it, the faster we'll be out of your hair."

Bulma meekly pointed over to the right to the building she had added to their compound as a result of the intense training her friends had undergone recently. It seemed like every other day, someone was getting banged up, so it was useful to have.

"Medical wing is over there. I already had everyone prepped, just in case. Just, um, please don't kill anyone."

Raditz nodded and walked over to a side building. Vegeta elbowed Trunks in the chest hard to force him to let go, which the teenager immediately did. Vegeta gave Bulma one last murderous glare before turning and walking behind Raditz. Trunks offered Bulma an apologetic look and followed after his father.

When they were out of sight, Bulma punched Yamcha as hard as she could in his arm.

"Yowch! What the heck was that for, B?"

"For not doing anything to protect me from that psychopath, you jerk!" Bulma yelled at him. "Were you just going to stand there and watch him kill me?"

"Of course not," Yamcha sheepishly said, chuckling nervously.

"Who the hell are they, anyways?" Bulma demanded, looking over at the departing Saiyans. "Are they on our side?"

Yamcha looked over as well, and sighed.

"I sure hope so."

* * *

Raditz was standing at a window a few hours later, arms crossed over his armor as he stared out at nothing in particular. His brows furrowed at the thought of the last year, and he sighed.

"The transmission from Zarbon came through on your scouter. He said that he had pinpointed where you and Nappa were. They had the whole army looking for both of you. Did they manage to capture you?"

Vegeta grunted. "Got the Ginyu Force in on it. By then, it was just me."

"They killed Nappa?"

" _I_ killed Nappa." Raditz glanced over at Vegeta in surprise. The prince avoided his gaze and stared off to the side. "He was only useful for his loyalty, and that ran out. So I took care of the problem," he said gruffly, his tone emotionless. He looked down and shook his head, running one hand up through his hair as he added in a low voice, "Whole thing was a fucking disaster, starting back on Rithica."

Raditz snorted and looked back out. "Sounds like it. Least you were able to handle the Tuffle bastards."

"Hn."

"How did you escape if Zarbon captured you?"

"The kid was…useful."

"Trunks?"

"He's stronger than he looks," Vegeta grumbled. He leaned his head back against the wall, reaching down and covering his now bandaged stomach with his hand. "So you got the transmission. And then?"

"I landed on Earth shortly after that. I assumed that you all were dead. I found out my brother not only was alive, he was doing well on this planet. He was married. Had a kid. The planet was in peace. There was nothing for me to go back to, and I wasn't going to kill the only other full-blooded Saiyan I knew existed, or his son."

"So you joined them."

"What else was I supposed to do? Purge the planet? Then what? I had nothing else, and I had no choice. I joined my kin."

"Hn."

"I knew Frieza would come eventually. I've been trying to prepare everyone here. I've been training them. I trained my brother for some time, while the Namek trained my nephew."

"What's a Namek doing on this planet anyways?"

"Heh. Your guess is as good as mine. I don't like the overgrown lizard. But anyways. I took over training the boy for some time afterwards. Then I tried training the humans, but there is little hope for them in a true battle."

Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest and looked back at Raditz, who was still looking out the window.

"Where is Kakarot?"

"He's receiving some special training by the gods, or some bullshit like that. Something about how he deserves the opportunity for elite training, for the good of the Earth, all that other crap. He'll be back eventually."

"The Earth shield. Was that your idea?"

"No. That was Bulma's."

"Who?"

"The blue haired girl you tried killing outside. She thought of that idea. Designed it and implemented it."

Vegeta snorted in disbelief, rolling his eyes. "A woman coming up with something like that? Give me a fucking break."

"She did," Raditz said, before smirking over at Vegeta. "I'm guessing it worked?"

Vegeta scowled. "It was… decent. Only a trained eye would notice its presence."

Raditz nodded and looked away again. "She also designed the weapons the boy and the bald short man had. She calls it the D-NAD. DNA destroyer. It's a needle that injects this stuff that reacts badly with any DNA that isn't human. It isn't painful but it completely paralyzes you. I tried it, and the Namek tried it, and the boy tried it. It worked on all of us. We gave the weapons to them because the boy is inexperienced in battle, and the bald man is simply a pathetic warrior."

Vegeta's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion and thought. "She designed all of that?"

"Yes. She's a self-proclaimed genius but all she's done is back it up with results like that. She's useful. They all are."

Vegeta was silent for a while, mulling over the information. Finally, he shook his head.

"Trunks eliminated King Cold and Cooler."

"He _what_?" Raditz gasped out in surprise, looking at his prince with wide eyes.

Vegeta nodded curtly. "Told you. He's stronger than he looks. In any case, Frieza is planning something. I don't know what, but we stopped on a planet on the way here, and he's got men in this sector already. It's only a matter of time."

Raditz looked back out the window as he sighed. "We've all gotten stronger here. But it's not enough," he growled low in his throat out of frustration.

"Trunks is the only chance we have, but I don't think he's ready," Vegeta said, shaking his head. "Frieza knows how strong he is."

"He will compensate then, I'm guessing… if we all work together, we should be able to stand a chance."

Vegeta frowned, and said nothing. He suddenly felt exhausted.

It certainly did seem that working together was perhaps their only hope.

* * *

About an hour later, Bulma was digging in her fridge for a snack. She was trying to decide between a slice of her mother's heavenly chocolate cake, or some taffy apple salad, when she felt something strange. Looking over her shoulder, she squealed in surprise when she saw Trunks standing there.

"Hey, easy," Trunks said, raising his hands up. He gave her a gentle smile, hoping it would put her at ease. "I just wanted something to drink. Is that alright?"

Bulma released a deep breath, her hand over her heart as she looked at him curiously. Finally she nodded. "Sure. Um, we have whatever you…alien Saiyans…might want. I think."

Trunks gave a carefree shrug. He wasn't really thirsty. He had gotten stitched up, and had spent the rest of the time tracking his father's ki signature along with Raditz'. Finally, he felt Raditz leave his father's temporary room in the medical wing, and then felt the prince's ki drop to a low buzz, the indicator that he had fallen asleep.

It was now or never.

"Anything you have is fine."

"Who said I was serving you?" Bulma asked with more than a little bit of attitude. Trunks' smile spread.

"Right. I'll just get myself some water."

Bulma moved back a little, forgetting her snack. She watched a little warily as the teenager went about serving himself a glass of water. Finally, something got her attention, and she tilted her head to the side a little.

"That's a Capsule Corporation jacket."

Trunks raised his glass and looked down at it. He nodded, before chugging the water down.

"But I've never seen it before…" her voice trailed off in confusion.

Trunks lowered his glass and put it on the counter. He looked over at his mother and sighed.

"I need to tell you something, but I don't want you to freak out," Trunks told her calmly. Bulma took a nervous step back away from him, and he raised his hands again. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise, on my life."

"Um, okay," Bulma said, inwardly cursing her boyfriend. Why the hell wasn't he there? She had psychotic Saiyans way too close to her, but at least this one in front of her seemed civil. In fact, there was something about him that made her want to trust him, though she wasn't quite convinced if she should.

"I am actually from this planet."

Bulma blinked at him. "What?"

"I'm from this planet. I was born and raised on Earth. But I'm not from this time. I'm from the future. Twenty two, maybe twenty three years into the future. I'm not quite sure of the exact date."

"That's impossible," Bulma snorted, looking at him like he was insane. "There is no such thing as time travel."

"Yes there is. _You_ created a time machine, and I used it to go back in time."

"I—I what?"

"You created a time machine, and I-"

"Alright, you know what? You clearly hurt your head worse than you think. I don't have time for this-"

"Your name is Bulma Briefs. You met Goku when you were 16 years old. You were trying to gather all of the Dragon Balls to wish for a perfect boyfriend. You have Bachelor degrees in Mathematics, Computer Science, and Mechanical Engineering, just because they were fun to get. You have Master degrees and PhD's in both Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering. You are the heiress to the world's largest fortune in Capsule Corporation. Your favorite ice cream flavor is chocolate. Your favorite movie is-"

"Please stop," Bulma said in a weak voice, staring at him with wide and frightened eyes. "You're freaking me out."

"I knew you in the future," Trunks mumbled, sitting down heavily at the table in the kitchen. He ran his hand through his hair, kept it there, and sighed. "I wasn't supposed to come back to this time. I went too far back."

There was silence for a while, before he heard the chair pull out next to him. Bulma sat down in the chair and looked at him. "What time were you supposed to go back to?"

"A little further along than we are now." Trunks lowered his hand and looked over at her. "Is there any way you can help me? I need to get home. My mother is worried sick about me."

"I don't know how I can help you. I would need some time to even THINK of an approach to a time machine, and then who knows how long to build it and make it fully operational. A project of that scale could take years."

Trunks cleared his throat. "Is there any chance I could, you know…maybe use the Dragon Balls?"

"Why are you asking me? It's not like I own the Dragon Balls."

"No, but you do own a Dragon Ball locator."

Bulma bit her bottom lip, looking the teenager next to her over. At the genuine desperation that he was struggling to contain in his eyes, Bulma's features softened and she gave him a small smile.

"I'll get back to you on it. I can't just give it out to anyone, you know."

"Yeah. I understand," Trunks said, trying hard not to sound as disappointed as he felt.

"Hey, don't worry. I'll do my best to help you get home."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Besides, I like you a hell of a lot more than I like that other guy you're with." Trunks smiled tiredly and nodded. She reached out and patted his arm. "It'll all work out. It always does. You'll see."

He sighed. He sure as hell hoped so.

* * *

"He wants to use the Dragon Balls," Bulma whispered, crossing her arms. She and Yamcha had both peeked into the rooms the two Saiyan newcomers were occupying in the medical wing, and they were both asleep. Now at the far end, they were conversing in hushed tones. "I'm not really sure what to do."

"What does he want to wish for with the Dragon Balls?"

"I… I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone. I'm sorry. But his explanation isn't bad or anything. I mean, I guess I _could_ give him the radar-"

"B, you can't. If he has that radar, then he can make find the Dragon Balls and make any wish he wants. How do you know he's not playing you, and just lied to you when he actually wants to wish for something bad?"

"This kid isn't like that. I just… I know he's not like that."

"I don't know, Bulma. I'm not sure I like this idea. Maybe he's just a really good con man or something."

"He knew way too much about me…"

"You're the most famous woman on the planet! All anyone has to do is Google you and get your life story!"

"No, he _knew_ things. And he was the one who even brought up the Dragon Balls. He already knew about the wish he could make."

"So? That doesn't make him trustworthy."

"I guess…"

"Look. Let's just wait until Goku gets back. I already have a hard enough time trusting Raditz without these two here now. They are ALL stronger than all of us, so we're just trying to stay on their good side."

"Goku said we could trust Raditz."

"Yeah, but Goku didn't say anything about these two new guys."

"Right… alright… I'll talk to Goku about it when he gets back."

"That sounds good. Goku will know what to do."

"I hope you're right… I'm going to go get some work done. Can you stick around until these guys wake up and leave?"

"Of course, babe. Come on, I'll walk with you."

Vegeta heard their voices fade out as they walked away. He was lying on his side in bed, staring at the wall and giving his back to the door. His eyes were wide as he slowly blinked. He had tried sleeping since he hadn't gotten much of it recently, and since no one currently on the planet was a threat to him. He managed all of about thirty minutes before waking up again. He wasn't used to this soft bed, and he was in unfamiliar territory that had his hearing oversensitive to protect himself. Raditz had gone off to get him a Senzu bean, so he could do nothing but stay there and wait for him. He had tried to fall asleep again to take advantage of the rare downtime, but was stirred out of his restless slumber when he heard the whispers of the humans.

Dragon Balls, huh? _Any_ wish he wanted?…

Slowly, a smirk spread over Vegeta's face.

* * *

Raditz looked in Trunks' room through the little glass panel on the door. The kid was out cold, one arm draped over his eyes as he softly snored. Being on a real bed after so long was unreal for him, and he had surrendered to his exhaustion and his splitting headache completely.

Raditz walked back into Vegeta's room. "He's down for the count."

Vegeta nodded as he tore off the last of his bandages, now fully healed with his power and strength restored by a magical Senzu bean. It was an incredible thing, really; far more useful than rejuvenation chambers.

Bare chested, Vegeta didn't bother putting his uniform top back on as he picked up his Saiyan armor. Raditz frowned at the new scars on the prince's body that hadn't been there before. Between that and his lack of a tail (which Raditz had noticed but was too afraid to ask questions about), he already knew that Vegeta must have left out quite a few details in his story.

Vegeta tugged down his armor over his head, leaving his arms bare. He then picked up his gloves, and started slipping them on.

"They lied to you," he finally said, keeping his eyes on what he was doing. "This is the only way. You know what to do."

Raditz said nothing. Not ONCE had anyone made ANY mention of the Dragon Balls to him in the entire time he'd been on Earth. It was obvious now that they didn't trust him. His tail twitched with his suppressed anger and odd feeling of betrayal. Sure, he didn't like any of them, with the exception of Goku and Gohan. And hell, he even found Goku to be extremely aggravating with how scatter-brained he was.

Still. They were brothers. Kin. The idea was still very foreign to Raditz, but he was making an honest to God attempt at embracing the concept of having a brother. After all, they had to stick together to fight Frieza. It was their Saiyan duty to do so, under the then-false knowledge that they were the last Saiyans alive.

But how could his own brother have kept such a huge secret from him? With the Dragon Balls, they could have wished for ultimate power. Immortality. Something, _anything_ to help them against Frieza. Yet everyone apparently preferred to die rather than let him know of the Dragon Balls. After all he'd done for them…sparing them, training them, helping them…

Vegeta pulled on his last glove, and glanced up at him. Raditz made eye contact with his prince and they shared a silent understanding. Raditz gave a heavy nod of acceptance and turned around, walking out of the room with his prince on his heels.

* * *

Bulma rubbed at her eyes. She had Raditz' green scouter opened up on the kitchen table in front of her. He didn't use it, having learned to sense ki from the Z-warriors, but she was fascinated by the advanced circuitry inside of it. As a side project, she was trying to rebuild the scouter to make it more sophisticated.

Across the table from her, Yamcha was leaning back in his chair. His feet were kicked up on the table, his ankles crossed. His hands were folded behind his head. A toothpick was dangling at his lips as he sat with his eyes closed. He knew Raditz would come around sooner or later and order him back to his assigned post. The Z-warriors were all responsible for different areas on the planet, in case an alien ship landed. Their assignment was to take the ship down and make it crash land, to give everyone else time to get there.

Right now, he didn't care too much about that. He was just enjoying some nice, quiet time with his girlfriend.

Finally, Bulma sighed and got up.

"I'm going to go outside for a smoke. I need something to settle me down."

Yamcha frowned and opened his eyes to look at her. He hated that habit of hers. "Why don't you just have a drink or something?"

Bulma sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not up for it right now, Yamcha."

"Alright," he relented. He wasn't up for arguing right now either. "Want me to come with you?"

"No, it's okay. I won't be long."

She left the kitchen. Yamcha shrugged and closed his eyes.

Bulma stepped outside into the fresh air, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. She was opening it to pull one out, when a rough hand suddenly clamped over her mouth from behind. Bulma's scream was muffled as a strong arm wrapped around her waist from behind, hauling her back into the compound. She struggled as much as she could, clawing at the hand over her mouth and kicking wildly as she was dragged through the living room, right past the kitchen where Yamcha was obliviously humming a tune to himself, and into a large storage closet. Yamcha did glance over in suspicion when he heard the door close, but shrugged, not thinking much of it.

The hand that was around Bulma's waist was removed, and then it was fisted painfully in her hair. Before she could even reach up to try to free the iron grip in her hair, there was a growl before she was slammed back hard against the wall.

Bulma whimpered, tears coming to her eyes, too shocked and too dazed to scream again. She didn't get the chance, before she suddenly found herself face to face with Vegeta. She backed up, but she was already against the wall. Her breath caught at the look in his dark eyes. It was one of borderline insanity and deadly rage, and it chilled her to her bones.

Bulma desperately pleaded, "Please, don't hurt me-"

"Shut the _fuck_ up!" Vegeta hissed right in her face, seizing her tightly and painfully by the throat and pinning her to the wall. Bulma was shaking from her fear at this point, trying valiantly not to cry, but the man in front of her was the most terrifying and frightening man she had ever seen in her life. "Scream and I'll kill you and everyone in this house. Understand?" he snarled.

Bulma was barely able to nod.

"Listen to me good, bitch, because I won't repeat myself. I want the radar to find the Dragon Balls," Vegeta sneered, leaning in so close to her that their noses were almost touching. Bulma was certain that the darkness in his eyes could lead the most virtuous straight to the depths of hell. "And I want it _now_."

"I…I don't know what you're talking about…"

Vegeta growled low in his throat. He pulled her off the wall, and then slammed her painfully back into it again. Bulma squealed in pain, tears streaming down her face now as she felt warm blood on the back of her head from the brutal impact, her vision swimming.

Vegeta threateningly raised his free hand. He closed his fist, and blue fire immediately surrounded it.

"Last chance before I kill everyone in this place," Vegeta snarled. He leaned in close to her and Bulma's shaking intensified. She held back the disgust and raw fear as he slowly inhaled by her neck, before he whispered dangerously in her ear, "And I'll save you for last, so you can watch it all happen. Hell. Maybe me and you can have a little fun," he added in a husky voice, nipping painfully at her ear.

"Bulma?" Yamcha's voice sounded out. Vegeta withdrew from Bulma, keeping his grip tight on her throat as he looked at the door. His eyes narrowed.

"Well. Looks like we have company," he said, shooting Bulma a maniacal smirk that sent chills down her spine.

"Don't hurt him," Bulma pleaded in a hoarse whisper. "I'll give you what you want."

Vegeta didn't have time to respond before Yamcha finally opened the door. He had tracked down Bulma's weak ki, especially when he felt it spiking.

"B, you okay-" he froze at the sight of Vegeta in front of him, inches away from Bulma. The heiress had her hands on Vegeta's hand which was gripping her throat, and she shot her boyfriend a pleading look.

"Yamcha-"

"Let her go," Yamcha growled, clenching his hands into fists.

Vegeta chuckled, raising his hand towards Yamcha. The blue fire grew in waves that flickered up and down his arm.

"This doesn't concern you, weakling. Your woman works for me now, and I will do with her what I want, when I want. I suggest you leave. I'll only warn you once."

"And I suggest you let her go, RIGHT NOW!"

"YAMCHA, DON'T!" Bulma screamed right as he charged Vegeta.

It happened so fast that it was almost a blur to the heiress. The prince disappeared right before Yamcha could punch him. Vegeta phased in right behind him. Without any hesitation or remorse, he grabbed the back of Yamcha's gi, pulled him backwards towards him, and ruthlessly drove his other fist right through Yamcha's chest.

Bulma lost the strength to stand and slid down the wall, shaking and on the edge of shock as Vegeta pulled his now blood-soaked arm out. Yamcha collapsed in a heap right in front of Bulma. She stared at him in blank disbelief, her brain not computing what her eyes were seeing as her vision blurred with tears. She couldn't remember how to breathe.

"Warned him," Vegeta said casually with a shrug. He turned back to Bulma and smirked down at her. "Now then, where were we?"

Vegeta was reaching down to haul up the completely dazed woman with the arm that was soaked with her love's blood, when he was violently tackled by a blur of lavender and blue. The impact was so strong that it sent Vegeta crashing through the wall and flying outside, until he finally skidded to a stop with his face on the grass.

Meanwhile, not too far away, Gohan and Piccolo immediately looked over towards Capsule Corporation. Piccolo stood up, but Raditz stood up as well.

"Stand down, Namek," Raditz ordered harshly.

"What is going on?" Gohan asked warily as Piccolo glared at Raditz.

"That's what I would like to know," Piccolo growled.

"You won't interfere," Raditz informed the Namek, ignoring his nephew.

"Interfere with what?" Piccolo demanded. He actually felt a chill when he saw the smirk spread over Raditz' face.

"Destiny."

The prince growled and got up to his hands and knees, spitting out grass and rubbing the dirt off his face. His gaze darkened as he slowly looked over his shoulder at the teenager who had delivered the impact.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Trunks shouted from behind him. He had finally been roused from his sleep when he felt Yamcha's ki spike. Almost immediately, he felt it drop to nothing. That was all he needed to sense to know what had happened, but it had not prepared him for the actual sight of his father standing over Yamcha's bloodied corpse.

Vegeta got up to his feet. Turning around to face his son, he dusted himself off like nothing happened.

"Take it easy, kid."

"Take it easy? _Take it easy?_ You just killed Yamcha! Why did you do that! Are you insane!" Trunks screamed at him.

"I warned him and he charged me. What else was I going to do?" Vegeta asked innocently, a smirk creeping over his face.

"What is _wrong_ with you?"

"Trunks," Vegeta said, his expression turning serious. "There are things called Dragon Balls on this planet. They can grant you any wish you want. Raditz and I are going to collect them."

Trunks blinked at him. "What? What are you talking about?"

"You heard me. That woman there, she has a radar that will let us track them. If we do it fast enough, we can make a wish before Frieza and his men get to this planet."

"Father," Trunks started, trying to ignore the way his skin was crawling at the madness in his father's eyes. "You don't need the Dragon Balls. I can defeat Frieza."

"Maybe you can, maybe you can't. I don't take chances. We will only have one shot at this. We need the Dragon Balls-"

"I won't let you have them," Trunks growled at him.

Almost unconsciously, Vegeta turned a little to his side as he crossed his arms over his armor. He slowly started circling. Without even realizing it, Trunks started mirroring his movement.

"And what are you going to do to stop me, boy?" Vegeta sneered, raising an eyebrow with mock curiosity. "You know you don't have it in you to kill your _dear_ father. You couldn't even do it when I was half dead, asking you to end me. What makes you think you can do it now?"

"I don't have to kill you to stop you."

"That's where you're wrong, kid. What are you going to do? Knock me unconscious for the rest of time? Bind me, throw me in a jail like the Tuffles? Face the facts. If you want to stop me, you will have to kill me. Can you do it, boy? Because if the tables are turned, you know I can."

"Father, _please,_ " Trunks desperately pleaded. "I don't want to fight you."

"Trunks, don't you see?" Vegeta pressed, trying to make his son see the light. "We could wish for _immortality_. Then it would only be a matter of time until one of us defeats Frieza, and then I could rule this dimension like I was always meant to. You are my son, a true Saiyan Elite, and your place is by my side while we rule for all of eternity. This is your destiny as much as it is mine. You never have to be at the mercy of androids again. You could have anything and everything you ever wanted. This is what we were born to do."

Trunks felt his heart drop to his stomach. In that moment, he already knew that he was not going to win this argument. He shook his head in dismay, trying to ignore the voice crawling up through his soul, whispering in his ear that maybe he _should_ have killed Vegeta back when his father requested it…

He shook his head to rid the thought. The teenager released a slow breath.

"I can't help you do this," he finally said. His blue eyes darkened, and he added, "I won't let you."

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. He didn't want Trunks on the other side, but he was not going to budge. With a wish for immortality, he would _never again_ be in the position he was in back on Frieza's flagship. Broken physically. Shattered mentally. Pleading for his tail. Begging for mercy. It made bile of hatred rise up in Vegeta's throat. How many times had Frieza stood over him, spilled his blood, broken him, humiliated him? He had slaughtered his family. Destroyed his people. Enslaved and corrupted him. Driven him to the point of insanity.

No. The Dragon Balls were the answer Vegeta had been waiting for his entire life. Nothing was going to stop him, not even his son.

Vegeta finally nodded in understanding, lowering his arms to his sides, squaring his shoulders for battle.

"One last chance to remember your place, boy, and take your place by my side. Remember, if you aren't with me, then you are against me."

"What are you going to do? Kill me?"

"When provided the opportunity, yes."

"I don't think you can."

Vegeta threw his head back and laughed out loud. "Of course I can. I don't make ridiculous attachments like you. That's what makes you _weak,_ " he spat out in disgust. "I am Prince Vegeta first, foremost, and always. Your father second. Remember that."

Trunks swallowed heavily. He reached up for his sword as the two began slowly circling each other again.

"I don't want to fight you, but I will."

"This isn't a spar, boy. If you engage me right now, be prepared to fight to the death."

"You can't win this fight, Father. You're outmatched. You'll lose," Trunks spat out bluntly, drawing out his sword.

Vegeta snarled hatefully at him. "I've never lost a fight in my life outside of Frieza's army, and I'm sure as hell not going to start today," he growled, digging his heel into the grass as he shifted into a fight stance.

"Let's go somewhere else," Trunks said, glancing around at the urban area they were in. "We can-"

Vegeta suddenly phased in behind him. Trunks blocked a kick aimed for his neck, and whirled around, trying to elbow his father. Vegeta phased out and reappeared above him, orange ki raging with flames on both of his hands. The prince then started launching a series of missile-like ki attacks that were aimed everywhere _except_ Trunks.

Suddenly, the teenager found himself trying to block all of Vegeta's attacks at once. The prince was ruthlessly targeting everything he could see: the Capsule Corp compound, the cars moving some streets away, women and children he could see walking. Anything and everything that moved, Vegeta aimed to kill as Trunks raced to save innocents from being slaughtered, especially the compound where his family was.

Trunks blocked the last ki attack right as Vegeta phased in behind him. The prince immediately took advantage of his son's distraction and punched him in the back of his head. The teenager was briefly knocked off his game, his head spinning from the impact. He still hadn't quite recovered from the crash of their ship.

"Transform into a Super Saiyan!" Vegeta yelled at him. He grabbed Trunks and spun him around, but the teenager snarled and kneed him hard in the stomach. Trunks then punched Vegeta hard. The prince was violently thrown back down to the ground from the impact, crashing through a tree on his way there.

Vegeta rolled over a bit, favoring his side as he got up to his feet. He glared up at Trunks, who was still in midair. The teenager put his sword back, and shook his head.

"I don't need to transform to beat you," Trunks sneered.

Vegeta grit his teeth together, his blue aura enveloping him as he growled. Trunks knew it was a low blow, but he didn't care. His father was out of control, and the teenager was pissed now. Pissed from all of this. He didn't want any of this, and he was sick and tired of having all of this happen to him. He had tried hard to bond with his father, understand his father, but his patience was finally starting to wear out.

Vegeta met him in midair as Trunks brought up his arms to block his father's punch aimed for his chest. Trunks tried to retaliate when the prince appeared behind him and caught him with a hard knee to his ribs that briefly knocked the wind out of him. It was only then that Trunks realized that his father was considerably faster than he had been before. It was taking a lot more effort than he thought it would to block and dodge his father's creative and relentless attacks without transforming into a Super Saiyan.

Trunks cursed as the two exchanged lightning fast near-misses, with Vegeta on the offensive. He couldn't keep holding back. When Vegeta reappeared in front of him, Trunks blocked a kick, batted a punch away, raised his hand up less than a foot away from his father's chest, and fired a vicious ki blast.

Vegeta crashed back to the ground hard, an explosion of grass and dirt blowing up with the impact of his landing. This time he was slow to get back up. He swallowed and tried catching his breath as he looked up at his son.

"Just give up. You can't win, Father."

Vegeta's eye twitched, a vein in his temple throbbing with his rage. Finally, he let out a scream that hardly sounded human, and with a flash of light, he took to the sky. His aura was sparking a mixture of blue and purple as he shot up past Trunks.

"Let's see you block _THIS!_ " Vegeta screamed down at him, pulling his hands back as electricity shot up around him. Trunks blinked in surprise when he felt his father's ki surging to levels he'd never sensed his father reach before.

The teenager squared his shoulders and let out a slow, shaky breath as he watched Vegeta power up. He had to put an end to this, and soon.

Vegeta growled, and a bright blue light sparked up between his hands. It glowed brightly, before suddenly sparking like a flickering light bulb. Vegeta shook his head, like he was trying to shake something off. Trunks frowned a little when he felt his father's ki slowly start to come back down.

Vegeta shook his head again, blinking rapidly as he started losing his hold on his Galick Gun power-up. Trunks brows furrowed together when he saw his father squeeze his eyes shut in pain, the bright blue light disappearing. Finally, the aura that had surrounded Vegeta vanished. His ki dropped to nothing, and he fell from the sky.

Trunks caught Vegeta and they both fell together to the ground. Trunks immediately got out from underneath his father, who rolled onto his side. Vegeta clutched his chest and screamed into the grass in agony.

"What's wrong?" Trunks asked in a panic, his heart skipping a beat when he saw Vegeta grab his chest. Surely, it wasn't the heart virus that plagued Goku in his time? Was it?

"I… I can't…" Vegeta tried gasping out, before squeezing his eyes shut and screaming again. He reached up and clenched a fistful of grass and dirt in his hand.

"Okay, it's okay, just breathe. Come on, I'll help you," Trunks tried reassuring him, his eyes wide with concern. He grabbed his father and helped him up to his knees while the prince desperately latched onto his jacket. "Come on," Trunks told him, standing slowly and trying to help Vegeta stand too.

He never saw Vegeta's attack coming.

Vegeta viciously punched Trunks right under his jaw, putting as much strength behind the blow as he could. Trunks took the blow dead-on, his head snapping back. He immediately collapsed flat on his back, knocked out cold. Vegeta snorted and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as he stood up, suddenly fine and showing no signs of pain.

"Merciful, gullible fool," Vegeta growled in disgust. His eyes were cold as he raised one hand over his son's unconscious form. His hand started to glow with lethal ki. "You're pathetic and not worthy of ruling by my side. Say goodnight, kid."

Five seconds later, and no shot fired.

Ten seconds later, and Vegeta's hand was shaking, with no shot fired.

Twenty seconds later, Vegeta wiped his brow with his free hand, muttered to himself to stop being so weak, and ordered himself to fire.

The ki would not release itself from his hand.

Vegeta growled, his ki glowing brighter and more deadly, his entire body shaking with strain. Finally, the truth dawned on him, in all its painful clarity.

_He couldn't kill him._

Vegeta hissed as he extinguished his ki. He ran one hand up through his hair in exasperation. He then spit on the ground, put his hands on his hips, and sighed, looking down at Trunks for a long time.

Finally, he exhaled through his nose deeply in defeat, and reached down. He hauled Trunks up and slung him over his shoulder, shaking his head as he muttered curses to himself.

A minute or so later, he unceremoniously dropped Trunks on the floor in one of the empty rooms of Capsule Corporation. He then did a quick ki scan, before frowning and heading out.

Bulma was desperately trying to gather her things as she heard explosions outside. Her hands were shaking as she tried figuring out which capsule was her hover jet. Luckily, her parents were out of town, so there was no one else there. On the verge of a serious breakdown from witnessing the cold-hearted murder of her boyfriend, the heiress could barely read the capsules she was picking up, cursing as her vision refused to focus and her hands refused to steady. This was the absolute worst time to realize that she was horribly unorganized.

Finally, she felt a rare surge of hope when she found the right capsule. She dashed out of the compound, running for her life, before throwing the capsule. It exploded into her jet, and she was in the driver's seat almost inhumanly fast.

Vegeta suddenly phased in right in front of the hover jet, his cold eyes locking on hers. Bulma shrieked in terror and tried to start up the hover jet, but her nerves were completely shot by now.

She tried to escape through the passenger side door, but Vegeta reached in and grabbed her roughly by the hair, as she broke down into tears again.

"You are going to give me that radar, right _now_."

Bulma whimpered as reality slowly sank in while the prince yanked her clean out of her hover jet. Vegeta had defeated Trunks, and possibly killed him. Yamcha had said that Vegeta and Trunks were more powerful than Raditz. Goku wasn't back yet.

There was no one who could stop Vegeta now.


	16. Came to Play

Vegeta was pissed off beyond belief. He had the radar for the Dragon Balls in one hand, and was struggling to keep himself in check so he wouldn't crush it to pieces as he glared at the woman in front of him.

" _What_ did you say to me, female?" he demanded, his eyes narrowed into furious slits. He had his free hand wrapped tightly around her throat, and had literally been seconds away from breaking her neck since he now had what he wanted from her.

But right as he was about to do it, the blue haired bitch dropped a tidbit of news on him. An important tidbit of news. As if he needed more shit to deal with…

"You heard me, you psychopathic son of a bitch," Bulma hissed at him, the venom in her voice as unmistakable as the pure hatred in her eyes. She was beyond terrified of the prince, but the loathing this man had invoked in her with his murder of her boyfriend far eclipsed it. Or maybe it was the blood still seeping through her hair and her pain that went along with it that were making her forget her fear. Whatever it was, at this moment, all Bulma Briefs knew was that she was willing to give up her entire fortune to see Vegeta die in the most painful way possible.

"Don't you fucking lie to me," Vegeta snarled in warning, tightening his grip on her throat just enough to make his point. Bulma had both of her hands on his wrist, and she grimaced when he applied more pressure.

"Kill me then if you don't believe me," Bulma spat at him, her voice hoarse from his grip on her throat. She still had tears shining in her eyes, but they were from her brilliant rage towards him. She glared back at him in defiance as she continued, "But it's true. The radar is synchronized to my voice. It will find each Dragon Ball, _one at a time,_ by my voice activation. So go ahead. Kill me. But then you'll never get your hands on the Dragon Balls."

It was the honest truth. She started building the new radar as soon as Raditz arrived on Earth. Even when it was clear that the Saiyan was no threat, her unease got the best of her. To prevent this very situation from happening where she would be forced to hand over the radar to an alien who overwhelmed her in strength, she decided to design the new radar so it was voice activated. The goal wasn't to prevent the Dragon Balls from being found. It was to slow the process down, and let her friends have enough time to figure out what to do. It was a plan that was now literally saving her life.

Vegeta stared at her, his face inches from hers. He could not believe that this human woman had both the foresight and the technological expertise to do as she claimed. He scowled, studying her eyes thoroughly for any sign of a lie. Finally convinced that she was indeed telling him the truth, his lip twitched, and he released his hold on her throat. He then grabbed her roughly by the hair, making her yelp a little in pain.

"Fine," Vegeta hissed. He had to collect the Dragon Balls quickly, before Trunks came to. Or before Earth got some unpleasant company in the form of Frieza's men. Whichever came first. He therefore had no time to deal with this woman's shit. "Then I will keep you alive until the job is done. But if you attempt to play any fucking games with me, I will rip your pretty little limbs off. Understand?"

"If you hurt me, I won't talk!" Bulma screeched at him.

Vegeta chuckled as he turned around, brutally dragging her with him despite her valiant struggling. "Oh, you will talk. I guarantee it."

Once they were outside, he shoved the radar at her.

"Do whatever it is you have to do, and find me the first Dragon Ball, NOW!" Vegeta screamed in her face, keeping his other hand painfully locked in her hair.

Bulma flinched a little, before slowly taking the radar from his gloved hand which still had a hint of Yamcha's blood smeared on it. Her hands were unsteady as she turned it on. A yellow cross in the center of the green grid blinked to life.

"Find the next closest Dragon Ball," she ordered, her voice hoarse from Vegeta's handling of her throat. They both watched as a line swept in circles like a minute hand on a clock, before the radar beeped and a light displayed the closest of the magical balls.

"It's thirty miles away, in that direction-"

That was all she had time to say before Vegeta snatched the radar back, slung her over his shoulder, and then blasted off into the air in the direction she pointed to. Bulma shrieked in fright, desperately trying to cling to the armor covering his back as he flew at a completely insane speed. His grip around her waist was iron tight, and he painfully tightened it when she started screaming.

"I suggest you don't lose your voice, female, because that's the only thing keeping you alive!" he screamed over her. Bulma immediately stopped, and the prince then proceeded to ignore her as he continued on his task.

Vegeta looked down briefly at the radar in his hand, and growled low in his throat when he saw that the light had barely moved. He started picking up speed, his heart pounding in his chest. With this female and with this radar, he just needed a little time and then he would be immortal. Or perhaps he could wish to become the strongest being in the universe. He practically salivated at the thought, but first things were first. He had to collect all of the Dragon Balls.

He just hoped he had enough time to do it.

* * *

Raditz threw his head back and laughed out loud as he crossed his arms over his armor.

"You want to fight _me_?" he chuckled in disbelief, smirking at Piccolo. "Green man, I could crush you with the heel of my boot."

"Then what's the problem, Saiyan?" Piccolo snarled, tossing his white cloak off to the side, where it landed with a heavy thud.

"Even if you somehow manage to defeat me, Namek, I guarantee you that you are no match for Vegeta. He is one of the strongest warriors in the universe. I strongly suggest you stand down. I will do my best to convince him to spare your life when this is all said and done," Raditz said, his smirk growing.

Gohan's tail twitched a little as he anxiously watched this scene unfold before him. He hadn't been this scared of his uncle since he had first arrived on Earth a whole year ago. The little boy was trying his best not to cower behind Piccolo, but it was difficult. Raditz was completely terrifying him. It was like he was a different man altogether. This wasn't the man who had taught him how to manage his Oozaru transformation as best he could, or how to protect his tail in battle. This wasn't the man who had taught him different forms in fighting from Piccolo's or his father's. He had no idea who this man was.

"Uncle Raditz," Gohan meekly said. The large Saiyan glanced at him. "Mr. Yamcha…he-"

"He's dead, kid," Raditz bluntly informed his nephew. "His ki dropped off the grid. And if you two even try to get in Vegeta's way, you'll both be next. This has nothing to do with any of you, so don't make it about you. No more of you need to die-"

"You expect us to stand here and just let him collect the Dragon Balls?" Piccolo barked in disbelief. "There is no telling what he'll wish for! He might want to wipe out this entire planet when he's done!"

Raditz shook his head. "No. Vegeta just wants to defeat Frieza. And so do I. As long as Frieza lives, none of us are safe. Not Vegeta, not me, not anyone here on Planet Earth. We could have done this together between us _without_ Vegeta, if you had told me about the Dragon Balls," the Saiyan sneered hatefully, his tail wrapping tighter around his waist.

"There was no need to tell you about them-"

"You FOOL! Don't you understand how powerful Frieza is!" Raditz screamed at him, lowering his hands in tight fists at his sides. "NONE of us stand a chance against him, and he's coming to Earth! Vegeta tapping into his true potential with the Dragon Balls is our only chance-"

"Raditz," Piccolo interrupted, one green antenna twitching. "Can you honestly say that Vegeta won't try to kill everyone on this planet in a purge like you once said you Saiyans are known for?"

Raditz hesitated in answering as he frowned. He wanted to say yes, but if Vegeta wanted to purge Earth, he could do so single-handedly in less than a day. And there wasn't a damn thing Raditz would be able to do to stop it. Hell, if he tried, Vegeta would undoubtedly kill him. Things would only be worse if Vegeta's power skyrocketed with the Dragon Balls. Raditz himself would no doubt be spared for being Saiyan, and perhaps his brother and nephew as well for the same reason. Everyone else was literally at the mercy of the ruthless Saiyan Prince.

And unfortunately, Vegeta was not exactly known for being merciful.

"Vegeta is not your threat right now," Raditz finally said.

"For all we know, you're just saying all of this about this Frieza character, just to let us hand you over the Dragon Balls," Piccolo growled, squatting down a little as he braced himself for a fight. "Seems to me though, that the only threats on this planet are you and your _friend_."

"Suit yourself," Raditz finally said, getting into his own unique fighting stance. "Don't say you weren't warned though."

Gohan looked back and forth between Raditz and Piccolo in apprehension. He had grown attached to them both, and the last thing he wanted to see was either one of them getting seriously hurt. The small boy wrapped his own tail around his waist, and was going to open his mouth to try to make the peace between them, when Raditz and Piccolo both suddenly disappeared from sight. The next thing Gohan knew, a pressure wave from a hard, invisible impact forced him down to the ground.

Gohan tried following the fight, but it was too fast for him to see. He could hear the blows being exchanged, and every now and then managed to catch a glimpse of one of them. He gulped a little, before deciding to just make a run for it. Maybe his dad was back home now? He would know what to do. Nodding to himself, Gohan took off into the air, away from the fight.

The young hybrid Saiyan made it all of ten yards before he was violently struck down. He crashed hard on the dirt, and whimpered a little bit. He winced and looked up to see Raditz hovering over him in midair.

"Where the hell do you think you're doing, boy?" Raditz growled down at his nephew. "Challenge Vegeta, and you'll die!"

"I…I wasn't going to…" Gohan nervously started, but his words trailed off when Raditz spun around. Piccolo suddenly appeared out of nowhere and delivered a powerful kick to Raditz' chin, catching the Saiyan completely by surprise before they both once again phased out of sight. Their battle resumed at a breakneck pace that Gohan couldn't follow.

At a loss for what to do, the small boy could only pray that it would be over soon.

* * *

"I knew it," Krillin mumbled. "I _knew_ these guys were up to no good."

His face was red with pain and rage as he stood over Trunks. Only mere minutes had passed since he, Tien, and Chiaotzu had arrived to Capsule Corp after hearing and feeling massive spikes of ki from the battle waged between Trunks and Vegeta. They had arrived to find their friend's lifeless and bloodied body, a compound that had taken its fair share of damage, and an unconscious Saiyan hybrid. Krillin's hands were shaking as he gripped one of the rifles that Bulma had designed.

"Yeah," Tien quietly agreed. "We should've all taken them out when they crash landed, while they were both hurt."

"We still could," Krillin said, looking down at the fallen teenager. With his foot, he nudged the boy in the arm, but Trunks was still out cold.

"If he was a threat, then why is he here and why is he unconscious?" Chiaotzu piped up behind Tien, holding a rifle of his own as he peered curiously at Trunks.

"I don't know, but Bulma isn't here, and Yamcha…" Tien's voice trailed off, before he scowled in thought. "From the mess in Bulma's office, it looks like the other guy took her with him."

"If so, then he's after the Dragon Balls," Krillin said, nervously wiping sweat off his forehead.

"Where the hell is Raditz?" Tien growled.

"Where the hell is _Goku_?" Krillin shot back. "He should've been back by now! I don't know what's taking him so-"

All three suddenly turned to face off towards the east as they picked up on soaring ki signatures. There was a fierce battle being fought, and it only took seconds to realize who the two were.

"Well, now we know where Raditz is," Krillin grumbled. He looked back towards his friends. "What the heck should we do? Should we just wait for Goku? And what about this kid?"

"Piccolo's gotten a lot stronger," Tien rationalized. "He might be able to give Raditz a real run for his money now. I say we go after the other Saiyan with Bulma. If _he_ gets hold of the Dragon Balls, then we're all dead."

Krillin visibly balked, backing up a bit as he shook his head nervously. "You want us to do _what_? Don't you remember what that guy did to me? He…he's way too strong…"

"Yeah, but imagine how much worse it will be if he gets his hands on the Dragon Balls. We won't stand a chance!" Tien argued adamantly. "Look. Chiaotzu and I will distract him, and you hit him with the D-NAD. Then we'll figure out what to do about all this."

"But…"

"Krillin, we have to do something," Chiaotzu tried convincing him.

"Oh, alright," Krillin said, gulping a little at the prospect of coming face-to-face with the cruel Saiyan Prince again. He looked back down at Trunks. "What about this kid?"

"Shoot him with the D-NAD. That thing won't leave his system for a while, or until Bulma gives him the antidote."

Krillin nodded, before lowering his rifle right to the side of Trunks' neck. He pulled the trigger, and when he withdrew, there was a barely visible needle sticking out of the teenager's skin. Trunks hadn't even flinched.

"Alright, good," Tien said, nodding in approval. "Now let's go after the other Saiyan, the one who took Bulma."

"Vegeta," Krillin quietly said.

"Yeah, whatever his name is. He's moving pretty fast, but he's not hiding his power. Let's go, guys, and keep your power down."

Krillin and Chiaotzu nodded, before following Tien out. Krillin grit his teeth, all the while silently urging Goku to hurry up.

In the meantime, he just hoped Tien's plan worked. If they could catch Vegeta by surprise and shoot him with the paralyzer that Bulma designed, they might have a chance…

Some time later, Bulma was unceremoniously dropped on the ground. She yelped a little, before glaring daggers at the prince with her, but Vegeta was staring down at the radar in his hands. They had already retrieved one Dragon Ball, and were now at the location of the second. He looked up around them. They were in barren and mountainous terrain. The sun was setting, and a gust of wind rose up around them as their surroundings were bathed in a soft glow of light.

"It must be here somewhere," Vegeta mumbled, looking back down at the radar with a scowl.

"Just follow the fucking light, you idiot," Bulma hissed under her breath. Vegeta immediately turned his intense gaze to her, and growled dangerously. He would have probably broken some of her bones for her insolence, but he turned back to the radar instead.

"Woman, I am in a rush and don't have time to deal with your disrespect. Don't force me to change my mind, because you will not like the consequences. I will only warn you once," he informed her, his voice ice cold, his dark and empty eyes sending a chill down her spine.

Bulma huffed a bit as she crossed her arms over her chest, but she wisely kept her mouth shut as her pride took a step back in favor of self-preservation. The man before her was a volatile, cold-hearted murderer, and he wouldn't hesitate to injure her. The last thing she wanted was to put his patience to the test.

Vegeta left her behind as he levitated into the air, up next to the side of a mountain. About halfway up, he finally saw a hint of gold. He quickly wiped the dirt away, and sure enough, there was another magical Dragon Ball wedged right into the side of the cliff. The prince easily plucked it out with one hand, and felt it a bit in his hand. Finally, he descended back to the ground.

Bulma was still sitting on the ground, her head in her hands. She still felt dizzy and light-headed from when Vegeta had slammed her into the wall. She was hurting, not to mention exhausted. The prince frowned, his eyes scanning her over as he came to stand next to her. He scoffed in disgust, thinking what a weak and fragile thing she was. He hadn't even tried to _really_ hurt her, and she was already damaged.

He reached down to grab Bulma by the hair and lift her up so she could voice activate the Dragon Ball radar again, when he suddenly looked off to the side. Vegeta stared in concentration, his eyes scanning the area but only registering more deserted terrain. He could have sworn that he sensed someone's power…

"Shit," he cursed under his breath, only now realizing that he had stopped suppressing his power after his fight with Trunks. He squatted down and put the small Dragon Ball next to Bulma along with the radar, making the heiress look up at him in confusion. "Put the Dragon Ball away with the other one, and don't you dare try anything smart," he snarled at her in warning.

He was already gone before she could even respond. The prince leaned up against the side of a large plateau, almost a hundred feet away from her seconds later. He crouched a little, clenching his right fist tightly.

"Whoever's there, I suggest you don't make me come find you," Vegeta taunted, his right hand already starting to glow with deadly ki.

"I'm up here!" a voice finally sounded.

Vegeta looked up, and bared his teeth at the sight of Chiaotzu hovering over him. The little freak; how dare he challenge the Prince of all Saiyans? He growled, his blue aura suddenly exploding around him as he shot into the air. He was going to kill the little shit fast, and then get back to hunting the Dragon Balls.

Right as Vegeta was about to fire a lethal blast at Chiaotzu, though, someone phased in right in front of him. He barely had time to see that it was the three-eyed man he'd seen earlier when he and Trunks crash landed, when Tien put his hands up by his face and screamed, "Solar Flare!"

The prince was blinded by a horrific flash of light, his hands going up to his face. He screamed alien curses in his shock and anger as Tien shouted, "Now, Krillin!"

Vegeta's senses immediately picked up something flying right at him. Blinded and all, the Saiyan did an acrobatic midair move to dodge the paralyzing shot from the D-NAD, before phasing out of sight altogether.

"Shit! Where did he go!" Tien shouted as he and Chiaotzu looked around frantically to catch sight of Vegeta. Down below, Krillin cursed as he lowered his rifle. That shot had been clean, but once again, Vegeta's speed left him feeling both awed and completely unnerved. "Do you see him down there?" Tien asked him.

Krillin looked around, but shook his head. _Crap,_ he bleakly thought to himself, breaking out into fresh sweat. _All we had going was the element of surprise…but now, without that…_

Finally, Krillin caught sight of blue hair. He ran over to Bulma, who was hiding behind a huge rock. The heiress shrieked when he touched her shoulder. When she saw that it was just her friend and not the Saiyan Prince, she almost broke down into sobs from her relief as she clutched Krillin tightly.

"Oh, I knew you guys would come!" she cried out, as Krillin patted her on the back. "He…he killed Yamcha!"

"Yeah," Krillin sighed with regret. "But you have to get out of here, Bulma. This might get ugly-"

"Baldy, you have _no fucking idea_ ," a furious voice snarled from behind him.

Krillin turned around, only to have Vegeta strike him hard with the back of his closed fist. The impact sent the smaller man crashing into and shattering the rock where Bulma had been hiding behind. Completely ignoring the frightened woman in front of him as she rushed to Krillin's aid, the Saiyan looked up and his eyes locked on Tien and Chiaotzu in the air.

"So, you three came to play," he mused out loud, a chilling smirk spreading over his face. "Well then. Let's play."

With that, he shot into the air. Vegeta's blue aura was powerful as he aimed a powerful punch right at Tien's chest a second later. The Earthling warrior barely managed to get his two arms up and crossed over his chest to defend himself from the blow, but his forearm shattered almost on impact. He released a shout of pain as Vegeta chuckled in amusement and phased out of sight. The Saiyan appeared right behind Tien a moment later, effortlessly batting an attack from Chiaotzu away. Vegeta landed a vicious kick right onto Tien's neck, the violent force killing the man instantly.

Tien hadn't landed on the ground yet when Vegeta phased out and reappeared behind Chiaotzu. The small warrior didn't even have enough time to turn around before Vegeta raised his hand and fired a powerful ki blast, decapitating Chiaotzu on the spot.

Bulma was helping Krillin up when Tien's lifeless body landed right in front of them. They both had barely registered the sight before Chiaotzu's decapitated form followed suit.

"Oh, Kami," Bulma whispered, her voice breaking as Vegeta casually descended in front of them, as though nothing had happened. The prince settled his gaze on the warrior next to her.

"I don't have time for this shit, Baldy," he hissed at him. "Get the hell out of my way, and you just might live through this."

Krillin though wasn't registering his words. He was staring at the dead bodies of his friends. First Yamcha, then Tien, now Chiaotzu. All of them discarded like they were trash. He looked up, and for the moment completely forgot how overmatched he was against the prince. He growled low as Bulma tried pulling his arm back.

"Krillin, don't fight him-"

That's all she could say before Krillin shrugged her off and flew right at the Saiyan. Vegeta smirked in appreciation as he shot back up into the air, forcing Krillin to go airborne as well. The Earthlings were weak, but they had spirit. He braced himself to dodge this next attack and make quick work of this new challenger, when Krillin stopped short and fired a Destructo Disc right at him.

Vegeta was too fast though. He did a backflip in midair, avoiding the deadly attack by mere inches. Krillin tried catching him with a knee to the back but Vegeta blocked it, upside down and all. The prince quickly righted himself and faced the smaller man, almost effortlessly blocking the relentlessly fast punching combinations Krillin was throwing at him. After a few seconds of this, Vegeta finally slammed his fist hard against Krillin's stomach.

The smaller man gasped and doubled over, feeling like he had just been hit by a truck as he coughed up blood. He heard a dark chuckle.

"You should have died before when we crash landed. Don't worry though. This time, I'll make sure I finish the job."

In one smooth motion, Vegeta raised both hands up over his head, grasped them together, and then violently brought his fists down on Krillin's head, forcing him to crash back into the ground. Without missing a beat, Vegeta's blue aura fired up around him as he suddenly shot down towards Krillin, fully intending to bury a knee against his neck to kill him for good.

Right as he was about to finish the smaller warrior off, though, a debilitating blow struck Vegeta in the side of the head that he never saw coming. The Saiyan was thrown completely off his trajectory, his vision swirling with a myriad of colors as he crashed hard into a wall of rock almost twenty feet away.

Vegeta blinked a few times, completely dazed as he slowly got up. He quickly shook his head a few times, trying to shake it off. Finally, he looked over to where the bald man had fallen. Squatting next to Krillin and giving Vegeta his back was another man, a man the prince had never seen before. He wore an orange martial arts gi with blue boots, and had wild, black hair. Bulma was next to him, clinging to him tightly as if for dear life.

The Saiyan Prince got back up to his feet, and snarled out, "I don't know who you are, but you will pay for that!"

The newcomer turned his head to the side, before whispering something to the blue haired heiress that Vegeta couldn't hear. Bulma nodded and immediately ran off to find somewhere to hide, and the prince growled from deep in his chest. He immediately started stalking over to Bulma to demand to know where the hell she thought she was going, when the newcomer stepped directly between them.

The prince's eyes widened in surprise as he stopped walking. He had only seen Bardock on a few occasions as a small boy, but the warrior had made a strong impression on the young prince. The man standing before him was practically a mirror image of him. There was no doubt.

"Kakarot?"

"Around here, I'm known as Goku," the younger Saiyan calmly asserted. His eyes were hard and ready for battle as he added, "And you've done more than enough. You're not going to hurt anyone else today."

Vegeta's surprise melted into anger. This man in front of him had Saiyan blood, which made him one of his subjects by default. And he wasn't going to let a third class soldier speak to him in that way.

"Fool, do you know who I am? I am Vegeta, the Saiyan Prince-"

"I don't care who you are, I _said_ that you're not going to hurt anyone else!" Goku yelled angrily at him.

"Now you listen to me, you third class clown," Vegeta hissed venomously, "I don't have time to fight any more of you. Stand down, and I _might_ spare you once I destroy Frieza. If you get in my fucking way, I will bury you in the dirt-"

"Fine. I'll stand down, but Bulma stays with me."

"Since when has this become a negotiation?" Vegeta yelled at him.

"Well, if you don't like it, then you can always do something about it."

The challenge in Goku's voice was unmistakable and it made the small hairs on the back of Vegeta's neck rise in rage. He was running out of time; first the woman had slowed him down, and then the pathetic Earthling warriors, and now, this Saiyan. Vegeta's eye twitched, before he phased out of sight and reappeared on top of a cliff so he could look down at the younger warrior. He was straining his senses, trying to get a gauge on just how powerful he truly was, but he was sensing a power on par with the small bald warrior.

The strength in the blow he received, though, told Vegeta that it couldn't be right; Goku was holding back. But how much, was the question?

Vegeta pointed down at Goku, a menacing sneer on his face as he coldly remarked, "You have made your death wish, Kakarot, and I will grant it. A pity that another with Saiyan blood must die, but no one is going to stop me. Especially not a third class weakling like you."

Goku would have normally been thrilled and excited about the challenge of facing this alien prince, but he was too enraged with the death surrounding him. Perhaps part of his rage was also directed at himself for not having returned faster from his elite training. He clenched his fists tightly, staring up at Vegeta, looking deceivingly calm.

"Ready when you are, _prince,_ " he finally said, just the slightest hint of mockery in the last word.

A split second later, and the two Saiyans met in midair in a clash that was destiny. Vegeta tried slamming his forearm into Goku's chest, but Goku brought his own forearm up and blocked the shot. They both were grinding their teeth together, each trying to overpower the other with raw strength as their arms shook.

Finally, Goku phased out and reappeared behind Vegeta, barely able to dodge the prince's elbow that was aimed at his face. Vegeta quickly spun around and landed a couple of fast and hard punches right to Goku's stomach, until the younger Saiyan finally recovered and caught his fists. Goku hauled Vegeta closer to him and nailed him under his jaw with a hard knee.

Goku quickly reared back and threw a punch with all his strength behind it, but he hit nothing but air as the prince phased out of sight. The younger Saiyan barely had enough time to turn around to see the blast of blue ki that slammed into him, violently throwing him back down to the ground.

"Hn. Faster than I thought," Vegeta said with a smirk of approval as he hovered in midair. He brushed the back of one hand across his mouth as he stared down at the younger warrior who was trying to recover from taking the vicious ki blast from such a close range. The prince's smirk spread. "Excellent form and technique, Kakarot. I am impressed!"

Goku spit out a mouthful of blood as he got back up to his feet. He looked up at Vegeta, his eyes narrowed. _Man. He's a heck of a lot stronger than I originally thought. I might have to use the Kaio-ken technique faster than I wanted…_

"Yeah," he finally said, giving a nod of respect as he peeled off the top of his now burnt and shredded orange gi. He tossed it aside and cracked his neck. "You're not too bad yourself."

Vegeta extended his hand towards the younger Saiyan. "Join us, Kakarot. You are a true Saiyan. Help us destroy Frieza, and then stand by the side of your prince."

Goku shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, but I would never join someone like you. Not after what you've done…and you're _not_ my prince. I haven't sworn my allegiance to you, and I never will!"

"Your allegiance was to me the second you were BORN!" Vegeta screamed down at him, irate at how dismissive the younger Saiyan was of his heritage. His upper lip curled back in spiteful rage, "But if you want to renounce your Saiyan blood and live like an Earthling, then you will die like an Earthling…"

* * *

Raditz dropped to his hands and knees and howled in pain. His body was shaking as he looked over his shoulder and snarled, "What are you doing? Let go of me!"

"I don't think so," Piccolo rasped out. He was battered and bruised, but still standing as he painfully tightened his grip on the Saiyan's tail.

Raditz' fingers dug into the dirt as his face turned red from his agony. Piccolo turned to look at Gohan, who looked highly uncomfortable seeing his uncle in such pain. The boy had tried getting in the middle of the fight in an effort to stop them, but he had only succeeded in distracting Raditz long enough for Piccolo to capitalize on the Saiyan's only weakness.

"Get out of here, kid. Your dad is back. Go find him," Piccolo ordered.

"NO!" Raditz screamed out with such force that both Piccolo and Gohan flinched. "Don't either of you fucking get it? Vegeta will kill him if he tries to interfere!"

"Your friend isn't going to kill anyone," Piccolo growled. "Goku's back now, and-"

"Kakarot isn't strong enough to defeat Vegeta, you fool!" Raditz yelled furiously.

His tail was twitching painfully in Piccolo's grasp as he lowered his forehead to the ground. All everyone had to do was stay the hell out of Vegeta's way; why was that so hard to do? He had assumed that Piccolo would be the only one who might dare challenge the prince, and so he had tried to keep him at bay. Not because he cared if Piccolo lived or died, but because Vegeta was running on short time. In a way, it was like the Earthlings were Raditz' troops. Vegeta therefore expected _him_ to keep them in check.

But things had now spiraled way, _way_ out of control. He had no idea that the other Earthling warriors would be brave (or foolish) enough to also stand up to Vegeta. Now two of them were dead, and Raditz knew his brother would fight because of it, to hell with the odds.

He also knew that his brother had no chance. There was just no way that Goku could have gained so much strength and power in such a short amount of time to stand up to the Saiyan Prince. It was impossible.

And as much as he tried telling himself he couldn't care less if Vegeta killed his brother, he couldn't help the anger he felt at the thought.

As Raditz silently struggled with himself, Gohan felt no such conflict. The small boy looked off into the distance, where he could feel his father's distinct ki signature flaring up along with Vegeta's.

"He needs our help," Gohan finally said, looking back at Piccolo and Raditz, his eyes pleading with them. "If we help my dad, then we could win! We could beat Vegeta-"

Raditz snarled in disgust at his nephew's naïve perspective. "No, we CAN'T! Just let Vegeta get the fucking Dragon Balls! Then he can make his wish, and then he can defeat Frieza!"

"But-but," Gohan sputtered helplessly, his tail unwrapping from his waist and twitching behind him in growing anxiety. "But, Uncle Raditz, my daddy-"

"Kakarot is a grown man and he knows what he's getting into," Raditz bitterly spat out. "If he dies, then so be it. It is honorable for a low-class Saiyan to die at the hands of the Prince-"

"I won't let my father die!" Gohan screamed at him. He couldn't care less at this moment about Frieza, or about alien honor and pride in a race he had never known. All he knew was that according to Raditz, his father was outmatched, and that meant his death was inevitable. The small boy turned around and blasted off into the air without another word, right as Piccolo and Raditz both simultaneously shouted at him.

"Gohan, don't!"

Piccolo grit his teeth when he saw the boy flying off towards Goku and Vegeta. He wanted to go after him and stop him; he had grown kind of fond of the kid over the last year. But he was still holding Raditz' tail. The Namek growled low and looked back down at the Saiyan.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" Raditz snarled hatefully at him. "Let me go and go after him!"

"Whose side are you on, Saiyan?" Piccolo snapped at him.

"I'm on the side of not wanting the boy to die!"

Piccolo's antenna twitched, and after a few seconds, he finally let go of Raditz' tail. The Saiyan rolled to his side and grabbed his tail to soothe the fire it was shooting up and down his spine as Piccolo blasted off after Gohan.

Raditz slowly sat up, wiping the blood off his face. Piccolo had given him all he could handle, and then some. He scowled and looked off towards where he could feel the only other full-blooded Saiyans engaged in battle. He stared in that direction for a long time, before finally getting back up to his feet.

He then took off after Piccolo and Gohan.

* * *

Vegeta might have underestimated the younger Saiyan at first, but no more - something that Goku was finding out the hard way.

Goku crashed hard into a wall of rock, leveling an entire plateau with an explosion of rock and dust. Behind him, Vegeta was in midair, and he wasn't planning on giving his opponent a chance to recover. The prince was sweating and out of breath as he extended his arms out to his sides, white hot ki snapping up around him as his energy skyrocketed.

As soon as Vegeta caught a glimpse of that wild dark hair, he turned to his side, brought his hands together, and pulled his hands back.

"Heads up, Kakarot!" he screamed, right as he fired a powerful blast.

Goku turned around just in time to bring his hands up. The blast hit him, and the ground started to shake alongside his arms as he struggled to control the raw energy from Vegeta's attack. Goku squeezed his eyes shut, feeling the skin of his palms burning raw. He valiantly tried to get control of it, but it was too powerful and the wave of the blast finally exploded around him. The air rushed with dirt and smoke, making Vegeta raise his hands to protect his eyes from it.

The prince smirked as he slowly descended back to the ground. He scanned the area over as the dust started to clear, but he could neither see nor feel any signs of his opponent. He reached up and brushed at his bloody nose, hardly able to believe that it had taken so much of his strength to finally overcome a third-class Saiyan.

Nonetheless, he had emerged victorious, and now it was time to get back to business. Vegeta turned and looked around, searching for Bulma so they could continue retrieving the Dragon Balls.

"WOMAN!" he roared, his eyes wild as he scanned over the terrain. He levitated back into the air to get a better view. "Show yourself at once!"

"Shit," Bulma cursed under her breath. While the prince had been completely distracted in his battle, she had been trying to help Krillin in an attempt to escape. The small bald warrior was still seeing stars from Vegeta's attack, and he was leaning heavily against her. Bulma whispered to him, her voice almost a squeak, "He beat Goku?"

"Think so. I can't, sense him," Krillin wheezed, one arm clutching his stomach. They both dropped inside of a small little cave at the base of one of the plateaus, out of sight from Vegeta.

"IF YOU DON'T COME OUT, I'LL BLAST YOU OUT!" Vegeta screamed from above.

"He won't, don't worry," Bulma whispered to Krillin, shaking her head. "He needs me alive-"

Her words died when the ground shook with a violent explosion, the result of a ki blast as an entire mountain was leveled.

"You were saying?" Krillin piped up, one eye squeezed closed as he glanced out. It was getting dark outside now, something that only helped Vegeta.

"Well, it's not my fault that the jerk is a complete lunatic!" Bulma hissed in exasperation, right as they were both rocked by another explosion. This one was dangerously close.

"Bulma, look, if he takes you, then he has to carry you," Krillin said, looking over at his friend. He gestured to the rifle he had tried using on Vegeta. "Take one of those needles out. Then if he gets you again, you can-"

"Then she can what, sink the needle into me and paralyze me?" Vegeta growled, making them both flinch in shock as they looked outside the little cave at the man blocking their only exit. The prince was dirty and slightly bloodied up from his fight with Goku, but if he was in any kind of pain, he wasn't showing it. He cocked his head to one side, eyeing them both with cold eyes. "I'm curious if such a tactic is simply a universal female form of defense."

Krillin immediately stepped over to stand between Bulma and Vegeta, though he swallowed heavily when the prince's eyes locked on his. Vegeta chuckled, cracking a smirk.

"Well. You've survived encounters with me twice now. But you know what they say," he said, raising his hand out towards Krillin. "The third time's a ch-"

Goku suddenly appeared out of nowhere right behind him, nailing Vegeta hard with a kick to the side of the neck. The prince literally flew out of sight from Krillin and Bulma, before Goku flew after him, red flames surrounding him.

Vegeta recovered in midair, and his ki flared up around him as he phased out of sight to avoid a vicious ki blast that Goku sent right at him. Vegeta reappeared right behind Goku and slammed his knee right into the younger Saiyan's spine, making Goku yell out in pain. The prince quickly grabbed a handful of Goku's hair, making him bend over backwards before he brutally slammed his fist right into his throat, forcing his opponent back to the ground.

Vegeta was seething with rage as he glared down at the fallen Saiyan who was coughing roughly in the dirt. Still, Goku tried forcing himself back up. Vegeta would have probably been impressed if he wasn't so desperately short on time.

"You put up a good fight, Kakarot, but I'm done with this shit now," Vegeta snarled, his ki skyrocketing as he powered up to deliver the killing shot once and for all.

Just as he was about to fly down and do just that, he heard a familiar voice yelling out to him.

"Vegeta, what are you doing?"

The prince turned to look at Raditz, who had just flown in. He was alone.

"What's it look like I'm doing, idiot?" Vegeta hissed at him. "I'm taking care of your worthless brother!"

"What about the Dragon Balls?" Raditz pressed. "Go, take care of that, and I'll handle everyone here."

Goku was wincing as he finally got back up to his feet. His muscles were aching; Vegeta didn't pull his punches, and Goku was sure he had more than a few broken bones. He spit out blood on the ground, before looking up. He made eye contact with Raditz, unable to keep the surprise and immense disappointment out of his eyes at what he was seeing and hearing. Raditz could only hold his eyes for a few seconds, before he had to look away.

"Hn. Fine," Vegeta spat out. He descended back to the ground and crossed his arms.

There was a tense silence for a few seconds, before Raditz finally asked, "Aren't you going to go get the Dragon Balls?"

"Yes. As soon as you finish off your brother."

Raditz blinked at him. "What?"

"The last time you told me you had everything under control, I was forced to handle these Earthlings on my own. This time, I want to make _sure_ that they are all taken care of, and that I won't be interrupted further. So get on with it," Vegeta ordered.

 _Shit,_ Raditz mentally cursed. This wasn't part of the plan. He slowly descended down to the ground, turning and facing his brother who was looking at him with a hint of apprehension. He didn't look any more eager to fight than Raditz looked.

A year ago, Raditz wouldn't have hesitated. But he had gotten used to Goku. He had met his wife and his son, and once he assured that he had no mal intent towards the planet, he had been welcomed with open arms. Raditz hadn't exactly dived right into being comfortable with them; the majority of the last year, he spent trying to adjust to the lifestyle here on Earth.

Somewhere along the line though, he had started to consider them to be his family. That thought kept him standing there, doing nothing, much to Vegeta's growing anger.

"I'm waiting, Raditz," Vegeta hissed in warning.

Raditz looked at Vegeta, trying not to show how torn he felt. The prince was impatient, violent, and cold as a rock. But Raditz was only a teenager when he had been forced under Frieza's rule along with Vegeta and Nappa. They had practically grown up together. More importantly though, Vegeta was his prince, and as a Saiyan, he had to obey what his prince said.

Torn between his allegiance to Vegeta and his regard for his younger brother, Raditz looked down.

A wave of blue ki rushed over Vegeta in rage. "You dare choose your family over me, soldier?" he shouted.

Raditz shook his head, before he quietly relented, as though ashamed, "I can't do it, Vege-"

Vegeta was suddenly in his face with a knee right to the stomach, before nailing him with a vicious uppercut as soon as he doubled over. The prince's upper lip curled back in disgust at the weakness in his lifelong comrade as he glared down at him.

The same weakness he himself had when it came to his son.

"Fine," Vegeta spat out venomously. "Then I will kill them ALL, and you will WATCH-"

Vegeta suddenly spun around, and this time, he couldn't completely dodge the blast that was aimed right at him. It only clipped him on the shoulder, but it burned right through his armor and burned his skin raw as the prince stumbled back and fell down. He looked up to see Piccolo there above him, one hand extended with just a hint of smoke in front of it. The Namek looked completely stunned that Vegeta had been fast enough to avoid most of the impact.

"That's IT!" Vegeta screamed in a frightful wrath, his face red and the veins on his neck throbbing. "ALL of you are going to DIE!"

Piccolo and Raditz made brief eye contact, right before Piccolo suddenly had his hands full with the Saiyan Prince. Vegeta ruthlessly battered him, each blow harder than the last. Piccolo tried phasing out and catching him by surprise, but the prince was officially pissed off and was one step ahead of him at every turn. Piccolo could barely believe how outclassed he was, even as Vegeta brutally kicked him on the side of his head. Goku got into the mix a second later to help Piccolo, and it was suddenly two-on-one, but Vegeta still held the distinct advantage.

The three finally stopped when they saw a white ball of energy soar up into the sky. Vegeta looked back down at Raditz in shock, right before the elder Saiyan closed his fist, and the light exploded.

"Oh, shit," Vegeta hissed under his breath, looking up at the light with wide eyes.

When he looked back down, he saw what he was dreading: not one, but _two_ Oozaru transformations. He had no idea where the kid had come from, but there he was. He watched with a mixture of envy, apprehension, and awe as uncle and nephew made the legendary transformations together. He clenched his fists tightly; only the one who created the artificial moonlight could destroy that same artificial moonlight…

"Whoa," Goku said next to Vegeta, also mesmerized by the transformations he was seeing as his son and brother both roared animalistically as they exploded in size. They had destroyed the moon upon Raditz' arrival to avoid this very thing from happening, but he had no idea that Raditz could force an artificial moon. "Gohan…" he whispered.

"It's unreal," Piccolo said on the other side of the prince.

Vegeta was about to snarl at them both that Raditz had never been able to control the transformation when both Raditz and Gohan fired open-mouthed blasts right at them. The three quickly dispersed, getting out of the way. Raditz and Gohan were targeting anything that moved as they both continued their assault, huge rocks being crushed under their feet.

The prince was flying at an awkward angle as he tried forming a Destructo Disc of his own, forming the sharp blade of ki as he tried aiming his shot at Gohan's head. Right as he was about to fire though, Raditz appeared out of nowhere and slammed a huge fist right into Vegeta's chest, forcing the prince to crash roughly to the ground.

Vegeta hacked up blood from the impact as he felt bones in his chest break. He was on his back as he coughed roughly, before slowly raising his head to see a large Oozaru Raditz looming over him. Raditz fired another open-mouthed beam right at him, and Vegeta barely managed to get out of the way. The Saiyan quickly scrambled up to his feet, turned back to Raditz, and pulled his hand back to fire another Destructo Disc.

Unfortunately, Gohan fired a blast of his own from behind Vegeta; it didn't hit the Saiyan, but it did hit just a foot or so behind him. The ground exploded and forced Vegeta up into the air, his attack aborted.

Piccolo was instantly there, and he nailed Vegeta hard right in the back with a powerful kick. Vegeta was reeling as he turned right into a ki blast from Goku. He barely managed to get his hands up, bringing up the remnants of the energy for the Destructo Disc in a desperate attempt to protect himself from the blast. It was four-on-one now, and this time he was at a disadvantage.

Vegeta tried phasing out of sight, planning on going somewhere to catch his breath and regroup, but Goku seemed to anticipate it. He grabbed the prince roughly by the armor and then headbutted him – hard. Vegeta was seeing stars, completely dazed as his eyes watered from the impact.

"Raditz!" Goku yelled out, spinning Vegeta around and shoving him right towards his brother.

Vegeta forced himself to move, shooting straight up into the air and dodging the huge fist flying right at him. His eyes on Raditz, he never saw Gohan behind him until he got struck down hard from behind. The prince was quickly forced back to the ground, landing face-first. He growled, his body shaking as he slowly forced himself to get back up to his hands and knees. As soon as he managed it, he vomited blood. He looked up through bleary eyes as Raditz raised his foot over him.

But as soon as Raditz did, the enormous Saiyan released a choking cry of pain as he froze. Vegeta was panting for air as he watched Raditz slowly lose his transformation and shrink back to his normal size. He looked over his shoulder and saw Gohan also shrinking back down. The prince looked up at the sky, but the artificial moonlight was still there. He wondered what the hell had forced the Oozaru transformations to be lost, and then got his answer in the form of a familiar voice snarling beside him.

"You're a real asshole, you know that, right?"

Vegeta looked over, and actually cracked a genuine smile at the sight of the blond teenager next to him who had his sword drawn.

"Watch your mouth, boy, or next time, I won't be so kind to you," Vegeta told him in a hoarse voice, before breaking out into rough coughing.

Trunks hissed through his nose, before slowly approaching his father. He could feel the drug running in his veins. It had literally taken almost all of his strength just to fly to where the battle was taking place. He was sweating profusely, and moving at less than a tiny fraction of his full speed. If it wasn't for his Super Saiyan strength and power, he wouldn't have had the energy to even move. Fortunately, that had been enough for him to slice off Raditz' and Gohan's tails before they seriously injured his father.

Unfortunately though, Trunks wasn't sure that he could last in a fight against his mother right now, much less one of the warriors surrounding them. Not handicapped as he was.

Trunks shook his head as he came up next to Vegeta. The teenager put a comforting hand on his father's back, before looking up at Piccolo and Goku who were descending back to the ground. Raditz was sitting up, as was Gohan. Meanwhile, Krillin and Bulma were slowly peeking out from their hiding spot, finally hearing everything slowing down.

"We really don't mean any of you any harm," Trunks said, looking specifically at Goku. "I'm sorry about your friends."

Goku frowned at him, before looking over at Vegeta who was forcing himself back to his feet.

"What do you guys want?" he demanded.

Vegeta and Trunks both responded at the same time, "The Dragon Balls" and "Nothing", respectively. Father and son glared angrily at each other, but fortunately for Trunks, Vegeta had no idea that if he wanted to, he could truly take his son down in a fight right now. The prince naturally assumed that he was no match for Trunks with his injuries, and so he nodded, relenting to the teenager.

Trunks turned to face Goku and explained, "We just want to destroy Frieza. My father thought the Dragon Balls would be the best way, but I'm a Super Saiyan. I can destroy him."

Goku stared at the teenager for a long time, studying him closely. Finally, he nodded, convinced of the boy's good intentions. "Well, alright," he said, though his look was still distrustful as he looked at Vegeta. "We could definitely use more hands…"

"You better get the fucking job done, kid," Vegeta snarled at his son, unaware or uncaring of the wary looks he was receiving from everyone surrounding them. He wiped the blood off his face as he turned to look at Raditz. His look was filled with hatred as he sneered, "And _you._ You insolent, traitorous piece of _shit-_ "

"Vegeta," Raditz pleaded, still sitting on the ground and coming to terms with the loss of his tail. "I didn't-"

Raditz was cut off by Vegeta's strong hand wrapped around his throat, the prince closing the distance between them in a split second. He raised his free hand, too enraged for words as he prepared to deliver a killing blow, the punishment for breaking his loyalty. Where they were from, loyalty to the royal Saiyan family came before your family and your own life. Raditz had broken far more than his trust when he sided with the Earthlings in battle against him. He had broken an ancient code of honor and respect, and as such, he now had to die.

But Vegeta stopped right before he brought the killing blow down, even before Goku and Trunks pulled him off Raditz. He didn't hear his son's furious ranting as the teenager screamed right in his face, his dark eyes growing distant.

 _It couldn't be them…could it?_ Vegeta bleakly thought to himself, looking off to the side. No one else seemed to sense anything, but he had always been hypersensitive to them, even before he learned to sense ki signatures and power levels…and he had never once been wrong…

Trunks finally seemed to notice that his father wasn't hearing a word he was saying, and he stopped his ranting, his teal eyes growing concerned. He looked off in the direction Vegeta was looking at, but he couldn't see or sense anything out of the ordinary.

"Father? What is it?" Trunks asked, as Goku helped Raditz up behind him. Not too far from where they were, Piccolo helped Gohan up to his feet too. Vegeta stayed silent, looking off into the distance, so Trunks tried again. "What are you-"

Then Trunks felt it. Power levels. Five enormous power levels. Everyone else felt it too, because everyone turned to look in the direction Vegeta was staring at. The prince swallowed heavily before finally speaking up.

"The Ginyu Force. They're here."


	17. Every Second Counts

Goku wiped some blood off his face with the back of his hand, his heart pounding hard in his chest. He had thought Vegeta was strong, but the power levels he was sensing now were unreal. He stole a glance over at the Saiyan he had been fighting only moments ago, but Vegeta was blankly staring off in the direction of the newcomers. Goku's brows furrowed as he shifted his gaze over to his brother. Raditz was sitting on the ground, one hand rubbing his throat. He was also staring off into the distance, but unlike Vegeta, he couldn't keep the anxiety off his face.

"Who are they, Raditz?" Goku finally asked, breaking his brother's daze.

"Frieza's men," Raditz replied, slowly working his way up to his feet. "The Ginyu Force. They're Frieza's most elite squadron…they're stronger than all of us."

"No," Vegeta immediate cut in. He turned to face the group of warriors, one arm cradling his ribs. "Trunks can defeat them. He's strong enough."

"I don't know, you guys," Krillin mused out loud, rubbing his head a little. He spared Trunks a look. "No offense, kid, but they seem too strong…"

Vegeta growled angrily at not only having his words challenged, but also having his son's strength questioned. The prince made a move towards Krillin to do something about it when Goku suddenly stepped over to block his path. Vegeta paused, only inches away from the younger full-blooded Saiyan.

"I don't think so," Goku forcefully said, his eyes suddenly alive with real anger. He missed the exchanged glances behind him between his friends; none of them had ever heard him speak with such a hateful tone. All Goku knew was that he hadn't been able to stop the prince from killing some of his closest friends already. It was a mistake he would die before committing again. He barely noticed Raditz coming up behind him, grabbing his shoulder to pull him back. "You better stand down before I finish what we started," Goku warned.

"Hn. Let me remind you, Kakarot, that with my son here, I won't need any of you to handle the Ginyu Force. So get the fuck out of my face, or I'll put you out of your misery, just like your weak, pathetic friends I already killed," Vegeta hissed, reaching up and roughly shoving Goku's face, sending the younger Saiyan back against his brother.

Raditz quickly grabbed Goku around the midsection right as he was about to physically retaliate, with Trunks doing the same with Vegeta. They both pulled the two Saiyans apart before it could escalate any further.

"Calm down, Kakarot," Raditz ordered, pulling Goku back. "Vegeta isn't your biggest worry right now."

" _Right now_ being the key words," Vegeta growled. He then spun around and roughly shoved Trunks away from him as he snarled, "Get the hell off me!"

The anger on Vegeta's face quickly turned to surprise when Trunks stumbled backwards and collapsed, landing sitting down as the golden aura surrounding him vanished. His hair faded back to lavender as Vegeta finally got a very good look at his son, who looked unnaturally weak. It didn't take a genius to realize that something was very wrong with this picture.

The prince was just opening his mouth to comment when Krillin groaned, "Aw, crap…he's still dealing with the D-NAD!"

"What?" Raditz shouted, spinning around to face the smaller warrior.

"That's impossible," Piccolo growled. He was facing Krillin, but he was eyeing both Trunks and Vegeta carefully out of the corner of his eye. "If he has any alien blood, he should have been paralyzed completely. There's no way he could have flown at all."

"No, I shot him with it when me, Tien, and Chiaotzu went back to Capsule Corp to check out what was going on," Krillin insisted, glancing back at Trunks. "We weren't sure what to do with him, so we decided to take him down, since he was knocked out at the time…"

Trunks blinked in surprise as he heard the news. So _that_ was what was running through his blood. He never had the chance to comment on it, though, because Vegeta let out an inhuman sound of rage as he advanced on the Earthlings.

"You weaklings dared poison my son?" Vegeta furiously yelled, his right hand already starting to glow with lethal ki. Trunks cursed under his breath as he struggled to get back up to his feet while everyone shifted back into a fight stance, except for Gohan who was hiding behind Piccolo's legs.

"It's not poison," Raditz quickly insisted, making Vegeta stop. The prince fixed him with a cold glare as Raditz rambled, "Remember, I told you, it's just a temporary thing. Bulma has the antidote that will rid the effects immediately. It's nothing that we can't solve-"

"Well give it to him then!"

"No."

There was a deadly silence as everyone turned to look at the woman standing right behind Krillin. She had her hands on her friend's shoulders, as if Krillin was her own personal shield from Vegeta. Her eyes were fiercely determined as she met the prince's gaze, even though she tightened her grip on Krillin's shoulders.

"Bulma," Krillin whispered, looking over his shoulder at her. "Don't push him-"

"I don't care," Bulma hotly cut in, sounding braver than she felt. "I don't trust either of them."

Everyone looked over to the side, feeling the power levels growing as the Ginyu Force split up. Vegeta's eye twitched, his teeth grinding together. They weren't wasting any time, going right to work as they started purging the planet. With their speed and numbers combined with the small size of Earth, they could have it done in hours. He turned and marched over in Bulma's direction, with Goku again stepping right in his way.

Vegeta stopped again, and felt like ripping his hair out in frustration. His options were disappearing by the second. He could fight the Earthlings and kill them, and then force the woman to help him in a renewed search for the Dragon Balls, or force her to help Trunks. But he was outnumbered and injured. Not only that, but the energy spikes would draw a bulls-eye for the Ginyu Force. No, engaging them now was a bad idea, which only left one option.

"Look," Vegeta finally started through grit teeth, addressing all of them even though he only made eye contact with Goku, "The Ginyu Force is more powerful than anything your pathetic minds can imagine. They are among the most elite warriors in the entire universe. They will purge this planet of all life, and they won't stop until everyone is dead. That includes all of us standing here. Are you starting to understand what's happening here, or do I have to draw a fucking picture?"

"He's right," Raditz added, his features tight with apprehension. "They're not as bad as Frieza himself, but they are still too powerful for any of us."

"Not for me," Trunks growled, forcing his way back up to his feet. He slowly put his sword back in his holster as everyone looked over at him. "I can kill all of them…but not like this," he added in frustration.

Goku looked back at Trunks, before looking towards the power levels he was sensing. He clenched his fists tightly at his sides when he sensed their raw energy being used in powerful ki blasts.

"The longer we stand here, the more your people die," Vegeta bluntly remarked, perfectly reading the anger on the younger Saiyan's face.

"Can we trust you?" Goku asked, not looking back at the prince.

Vegeta resisted the urge to snort in disgust. If trust was using these warriors to his advantage and then killing them as soon as the threat of the Ginyu Force was dealt with, then yes, he was trustworthy. He wisely kept his ultimate plan to himself though as he coolly answered, "Let's just say that for the moment, all of you are more useful to me alive than dead."

"You can trust us," Trunks promised, slowly coming up next to his father while Vegeta rolled his eyes at his son's weakness. The teenager didn't care as he looked over at his young mother. "Please, I need your help. My father's right. The longer we wait, the more people are going to die."

Bulma studied Trunks for a few seconds, anxiously biting her bottom lip. There was something about the kid that made her want to give him the benefit of the doubt. She just couldn't put her finger on what it was.

"It's our only chance," Krillin quietly whispered to her. She cringed a little, glancing nervously in the direction where everyone had sensed the Ginyu Force. Raditz had told them all about the purges Frieza's men did, and she didn't want that happening to her planet. If they all could trust Trunks and Vegeta, maybe she could too.

"Alright," Bulma finally relented. "I don't have it on me now, but if we go back to Capsule Corp, I could get the antidote for the D-NAD."

"Go with her then," Vegeta ordered, looking over at Trunks. "The faster it's out of your system, the faster you can take them out. The rest of us can distract them and buy you more time."

Trunks nodded as Goku added, "Fine, but Krillin goes with them."

The Saiyan shot his best friend a look, and Krillin nodded his agreement as he raised the rifle he had brought along with him. No one said anything, but a second shot of the D-NAD was fatal, something even Raditz didn't know. If push came to shove and Trunks proved not to be trustworthy, Krillin could put him down for good.

"Can you fly?" Krillin asked Trunks, looking the teenager over critically.

"Yeah," Trunks nodded, wiping his sweat off his face. He was completely exhausted, but he had to do what he had to do. "Let's do this."

"Alright," Krillin said, putting his arm around Bulma's waist as he pulled her against him, holding his rifle up with his other hand.

"Stay close to the ground, and keep your power down," Vegeta ordered.

Trunks nodded his agreement as Krillin levitated into the air with Bulma clinging tightly to him. Trunks summoned up the scraps of energy he had left, and followed suit. While Raditz, Vegeta, and Piccolo watched them disappear from sight, Goku turned to look over at his own son.

"Gohan, come here," he ordered. The little boy blinked in surprise, before doing as he was told, coming over to stand in front of his father. Goku's features softened a little. "I'd feel better if you went back home to your mother while we take care of this, son."

Gohan's face fell at that. "But I want to help. I can help," the little boy insisted.

Goku smiled a little, and put a hand on top of Gohan's head. He could sense how much stronger the boy was, but he also knew that this upcoming battle had the potential to get ugly. He didn't want his son to be part of it.

"You can help by taking care of your mother."

"But-"

"Do like he says, kid," Raditz interrupted. "We don't have much time."

Gohan shifted his weight awkwardly, wincing in pain as the stub on his lower back itched to wave his non-existent tail. Goku removed his hand, and the little boy looked back up at him.

"You'll be okay, right? You'll win?" Gohan asked, desperate for hope when all he saw around him were grim features anticipating the worst.

"Definitely. Now go," Goku said, giving the boy a nudge in the direction of their home.

Gohan looked back at Piccolo, and then at his uncle. He avoided eye contact with Vegeta, since the man still scared him to death, before finally looking back at his dad. He was young, just a little boy, but he was already able to tell that his father wasn't being completely honest with him. Nonetheless, he gave a conceding nod, before reluctantly taking off into the air and flying towards home.

 _There's no way to guarantee that. If anything goes wrong, we're all dead,_ Raditz mentally told his brother.

Goku looked back at him and smirked a little. _Maybe so, but not without a fight._

"Alright," Vegeta started, turning back to face the three strongest warriors on the planet who could help him. "We need a plan to fight the Ginyu Force. Here is what you need to know about them, and here is what we're going to do…"

* * *

Unfortunately for Trunks, there wasn't enough determination or motivation in the world that could last against Bulma's custom-made, potent alien paralyzer. The teenager lasted all of eight minutes before his body finally had enough, and gave out on him completely. He barely managed to control his fall through the air, landing on his knees in the dirt before collapsing.

Krillin felt Trunks' ki suddenly drop, and he looked over his shoulder. He suddenly stopped in midair and descended back down to where the teenager was laying on his side. He and Bulma ran over to Trunks, both of them kneeling down next to him.

"Hey, kid, come on," Krillin urgently said, shaking Trunks by the shoulder. "You need to get up. We have to keep going."

"I can't," Trunks groaned. "I can't move."

"The D-NAD is finally getting into your system," Bulma said as she studied the teenager with a scientific eye. "It took a while but it's finally reacting and doing what it's supposed to do. I can't believe it even took this long. "

"Shit," Trunks hissed. He squinted into the distance, and his sensitive hearing could barely pick up faint explosions. "I have to get up."

"There's nothing you can do unless you want to wait a few hours for it to leave your system," Bulma answered, peering down at the boy in concern. "The only solution is to get the antidote."

"I can carry you," Krillin suggested. "It might be kinda tough with Bulma, but I can do it-"

"No," Trunks cut in, giving a brief shake of his head. "I'll only slow you down more than I already have. Go ahead without me. You'll go faster that way. I'll stay here."

Krillin immediately accepted the plan. He nodded and went to grab Bulma again, when the young heiress pushed away from him.

"We can't just leave Trunks out here in the middle of nowhere, Krillin!" Bulma yelled, making her small friend wince.

"Bulma, we have to get this kid the antidote-"

He was cut off by Bulma poking him on the chest as she leaned down into his face, "The _only_ reason we even need an antidote for him is because _you_ shot him with the D-NAD! The least we can do now is move him somewhere so he's not in plain sight of those monsters flying around on Earth!"

Krillin sputtered a bit, before starting, "But, Bulma, we can't-"

"Look, there's a small cave right over there! We can move him over there," Bulma planned out loud, ignoring her anxious friend as she focused on Trunks. Krillin watched her in exasperation while she valiantly attempted dragging the teenager over to the cave by herself. After a few seconds of getting nowhere, the heiress glared at Krillin. "Well? Are you going to help me or what! I can't move this kid by myself, you know!"

Krillin sighed in defeat before going over to help. With his assistance, it only took about ten seconds until Trunks was dragged out of sight. Krillin propped the boy up so he was sitting against the cave wall. Trunks was covered in sweat while he struggled to breathe. He squinted up to see Bulma looking down at him, studying him curiously.

Krillin tugged on her arm as he told Trunks, "We'll be back with the antidote as soon as possible, kid."

"Yeah," Bulma agreed almost absent-mindedly, her mind racing again as she started putting the pieces together. She gave Trunks a strained smile, "Just sit tight, Trunks."

Trunks grunted a little in response, too drained to form words as he closed his eyes to conserve what little remained of his strength. Krillin didn't waste any more time as he grabbed Bulma and took to the air again. This time, he went considerably faster since he didn't have to keep at Trunks' pace.

They flew for about ten minutes before Bulma finally said, "If I ever had a son, I always wanted to name him Trunks."

"What?" Krillin asked, blinking in surprise.

"I thought it was coincidence, but he's having the same specific reaction to the D-NAD that Gohan had," Bulma mused out loud. "Piccolo, Raditz, and Goku were just paralyzed, not drained of their energy…but Gohan…"

Krillin didn't know why, but part of him felt uncomfortable with where this conversation was going. "Didn't you say Gohan only had that reaction because he had human blood?"

"Yeah."

"But this kid can't have human blood. His father is Vegeta. He's Saiyan."

"But if he was a full-blooded Saiyan, his reaction would have been the same as Goku's and Raditz'," Bulma reasoned. "So he can't be a full-blooded Saiyan…"

"Yeah, maybe he's some kinda hybrid. Who knows what other kinds of aliens are out there."

She could hear Trunks' voice in her mind, clear as day: _"I'm from this planet…I was born and raised on Earth…I knew you in the future…"_

"Oh, Kami," Bulma bleakly said, clutching onto Krillin tighter as she visibly paled. _He couldn't be._ No, it was impossible. Trunks' father was that ruthless piece of shit Saiyan, a miserable excuse for a man that she hated with every fiber of her being. Her mind settled down as she mulled things over again. Vegeta was the only piece of the puzzle that didn't fit, and he was a large enough piece to dismiss the entire theory altogether.

"Bulma? What's wrong?" Krillin asked in concern.

"Nothing."

"Are you su-"

Krillin suddenly stopped in midair as the outskirts of West City finally came into view. His jaw went slack at the sight of smoke and the smell of death already reaching him. Worse than that, though, he could feel the energy levels of two members of the Ginyu Force. Being this close to them, he could feel just how powerful they were. He gulped; he had never felt anything like it in his entire life.

"Why'd you stop?" Bulma asked, looking over her shoulder in the direction Krillin was staring at. She gasped at the sight of her home city in a state of destruction.

"I know," Krillin said, tightening his grip on his rifle in trepidation. Capsule Corp was in West City, so there was no getting around it. He had to go right in the middle of things, and he had to do it fast. He gulped again, deep down wishing Goku had suggested Piccolo or Raditz to accompany Bulma and Trunks instead.

 _But then, I would have to help them fight the Ginyu Force head on. Man. A guy just can't win around here,_ Krillin dismally thought.

"Alright," he said, nodding a little, "They're not expecting us. So we'll just have to sneak in, lay low, get what we need and then come back."

"Sounds easy enough," Bulma said as Krillin descended enough to stay low to the ground, just as Vegeta told him.

"Yeah…well, here goes nothing…"

* * *

Captain Ginyu crossed his arms over his broad chest, chuckling as he watched Recoome effortlessly level another huge building in downtown East City. His orders were as short as they were clear: capture Trunks, and bring the boy back to meet his final fate. Frieza hadn't sent them in blind; he had given them a potent solution of the ancient mineral nrehi to neutralize Trunks' strength. The plan was simple. Guldo could freeze time, go and sink the needle with the nrehi into Trunks, and then they would take the boy and deliver him to Frieza.

The Captain stood perfectly still as humans ran all around him around in complete terror. He watched them with amusement while Recoome continued destroying their city. He himself wasn't participating in the purge, but he was enjoying himself nonetheless. After all, if the boy was truly on this planet, then the purge would flush him out, one way or the other.

He looked over to the side where Guldo fired a blast at some people who were running away from the destruction. "Hurry it up," he ordered both of his men. "I want to get back to some work I was doing on Planet Yijon, so let's quicken the pace."

"Yes, Captain," Guldo and Recoome both answered. They both started packing more energy into their attacks, and soon, East City consisted of rubble, fire, corpses and smoke. The Captain smiled in approval. Now that was more like it.

"Well," he boomed, "It doesn't seem like our friend is here. Let's move on, men. Time is of the-"

Suddenly, a light activated on all of three scouters. They all immediately turned around to see Piccolo hovering in midair. The Namekian's ki was spiking in a powerful white aura that surrounded him. The Captain reached up to his scouter to get a read on the new threat.

"A Namekian on this planet," he mused. "How intriguing."

"You all have done enough," Piccolo growled, clenching his fists as his power level kept rising, making the scouters of the Ginyu Force keep running.

"Is that so?" the Captain challenged, surprised but not intimidated in the least by the strength of the Namekian hovering in the air over him.

"That's right," Piccolo affirmed, a slow smirk spreading over his face. He raised two fingers up to his forehead, blue sparks shooting up around him as he rapidly summoned up an extraordinary amount of energy. "And your welcome's just run out."

Before the Captain could respond, three full-blooded Saiyans suddenly attacked from out of nowhere, swarming Recoome and Guldo from behind and catching them completely off guard. Vegeta wasted no time as he targeted Guldo, violently wrenching his head off from behind before the warrior could even fully turn around. Not too far from him, Goku and Raditz both teamed up on Recoome, with Raditz burying his knee into his back while his younger brother, in all his Kaio-ken glory, delivered a hard kick right to Recoome's neck.

The Captain turned around just in time to see Guldo's lifeless body fall to the ground as Recoome fell to his knees. Lightning quick, Goku phased in and nailed Recoome with a brutal uppercut that knocked his scouter right off his face and sent him flying backwards towards Raditz. The eldest Saiyan phased in right next to Recoome in midair, kicking the larger warrior hard and forcing Recoome straight up into the air.

Vegeta immediately fired a powerful wave of blue ki into the air, right at Recoome. At the same time, Piccolo fired his own cannon beam right at Ginyu, who was completely distracted by the Saiyans, while Goku and Raditz both dived out of the way.

Both attacks from Piccolo and Vegeta hit dead on, and there was a massive explosion. Dust and smoke rushed through the air, clouding all vision. Vegeta raised his hand up to protect his eyes, breathing heavily from having to summon up so much energy so fast. He was exhausted as Goku slowly came up next to him.

"You think it worked?" Goku asked, putting his hands on his hips as he likewise tried catching his breath. He tried squinting through the smoke, but he couldn't see anything.

"I think so," Vegeta said, coughing a little as Piccolo slowly descended. "I can't sense them."

"Me neither. You were right, they weren't expecting that," Goku said, his features finally relaxing a bit as he grinned.

"For being so strong, they sure weren't very bright," Piccolo mused out loud as the smoke started to clear. Recoome was laying on the ground facedown, his battle uniform burnt and shredded.

"They're not known for their smarts, that's for sure," Raditz added as he walked over to them.

"I could say the same thing about Saiyans," an amused voice suddenly spoke up.

They all looked over in shock to see Ginyu in midair behind them, arms crossed over his chest, a smirk on his face. He was completely unscathed as he continued, "Presumptuous, arrogant, and foolish monkeys. I do admit though that I'm surprised to see you here, Vegeta. All reports were that you were likely dead. But, I have to say, I'm pleased to see that you're not."

Vegeta opened his mouth to speak, but he could form no words. As if that wasn't bad enough, from behind them, Recoome suddenly nipped up to his feet, drawing their attention. The color drained from the faces of all the Saiyans when they saw him smirk at them. Even Piccolo looked a paler shade of green. Aside from the damage to his armor and uniform, he looked fine.

"Well, that wasn't very polite, attacking me from behind like that," Recoome chuckled.

"Impossible," Raditz mumbled under his breath. "There's just no way they can be so strong…"

"So…you got a backup plan, Vegeta?" Goku whispered, his hands clenched into fists as real anxiety crept through him for the first time. He had put everything he had into his shots against Recoome, to no avail.

"I'm thinking," the prince hissed. He and Piccolo were facing Ginyu, both of them back-to-back with Goku and Raditz, respectively, as the brothers faced Recoome.

"I don't mean to _rush_ , but you need to think faster," Piccolo snarled impatiently.

"Well shut the hell up and let me think then!" Vegeta snarled back as he desperately tried to come up with some kind of plan. But he was drawing a blank. He had wanted to at least _slightly_ injure Recoome and Ginyu to level the playing field and give them a chance in a fight. At least then, they could have engaged the two elite warriors in a battle long enough for Trunks to recover from the D-NAD.

"While it would be most entertaining seeing what plan you could come up with, we are running on a tight deadline," Ginyu informed them as he slowly descended back to the ground. "Now, tell us where the boy is, and we might spare one or two of you. Maybe we could spare _you_ , Vegeta. I'm sure Lord Frieza would be splendidly delighted to have you delivered to him again," Ginyu laughed.

Vegeta's eye twitched at the mere thought, before he angrily spat out, "The boy you're looking for isn't on this planet."

"Oh? Then where is he?" Ginyu challenged.

"He's on Planet Pyris. I took him there before I came here. You're wasting your time on this planet, so you would be wise to leave, unless you want to miss your deadline with Frieza," Vegeta warned.

Recoome snorted in amusement. "Vegeta, always such a liar."

"It's not a lie, it's the truth," Raditz immediately chimed in, going along with Vegeta's lead. "I haven't seen the half-breed since we were on Rithica together. Vegeta came alone."

"Mhmm. _Sure_ he did," Ginyu said, smirking again. "A shame though that we've already purged the planet, and so we know the boy's not there. Naturally, then, the boy came with you here to Earth. If you're lying for him, then he's still alive. So, where is he?"

Vegeta glared up at Ginyu in defiance as he heatedly growled, "I don't know where Trunks is, and even if I did, I'd never tell you."

"Well, since you won't give me answers, and the boy isn't here yet, then I suppose you and your band of misfits are of no use to me," Ginyu said with a shrug. He looked past all four of them, making them all turn to look at Recoome. "Will you do the honors?" Ginyu asked.

"With pleasure," Recoome responded, taking a step forward. "So, who would like to die first?"

"We have to buy more time," Vegeta growled.

"So what do you suggest? Fight them head on?" Goku asked. The prince glanced at him with a scowl, thinking the warrior was being sarcastic. But he blinked a bit when he saw that Goku was serious and ready to fight, to hell with the odds. Vegeta smirked a little; it seemed the younger warrior was a true Saiyan after all.

"Yes, but one at a time," Vegeta whispered. "Then we'll give Trunks and the humans the time they need."

Without waiting for a response, Vegeta stepped forward to face Recoome alone. Raditz immediately tried to walk after him, but Goku grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back.

"He's outmatched!" Raditz hissed. For everything that had gone down between him and Vegeta, he still didn't want to see the prince get dismantled right in front of him.

"We're _all_ outmatched," Piccolo reasoned. "But he knows them, and he's stronger than you, so he can buy the most time."

"Trunks will be here soon, I'm sure of it," Goku added, not letting go of Raditz. "Anyways, it's his choice, so let him fight."

Vegeta overheard the hushed conversation behind him, of course, but he ignored it. He took a deep breath as he looked ahead towards his enemy, blocking out all other thoughts from his mind. All he had to do now was fight and stay alive, both of which were his greatest talents. The problem was that he was more than a little banged up from his earlier battle against the Earthlings, and he was spent too. Recoome would have been a handful with him at 100 percent. But like this, he wasn't sure how long he would last.

"So the first challenger steps up," Recoome said with a grin. Behind all of them, Ginyu stepped back as he activated a new communication link on his scouter to relay information to Jeice and Burter. No one noticed as Recoome continued, "Well Vegeta, it will be fun giving you your last fight."

Vegeta scoffed. "You're not the first to tell me that, and you won't be the last," he guaranteed, slowly shifting back into his fight stance despite his pain. Recoome's scouter immediately activated and started racing as debris swirled up into the air around Vegeta as he powered up.

Recoome smiled. "Let's just see about that…"

* * *

Meanwhile, in West City, the purge was still ongoing. In the midst of the chaos, Krillin tried maneuvering as discretely as he could through the damage, but it was becoming harder and harder to ignore the death around him. Bulma was on his back, clinging tightly to him.

"Not too much farther," Krillin whispered. They were under a mile from the compound now.

He ducked into a back alley, his heart pounding as he tried his best to keep track of where the two warriors were. He kept running, when suddenly a building blew up next to him, sending both him and Bulma crashing against the side of another building.

His ears were ringing from the explosion as he slowly blinked. Krillin shook it off, and crawled over to Bulma, who was on the ground.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

"Yeah," she weakly responded. Her side and her arm were sore from hitting the wall, and she was still reeling from dealing with Vegeta earlier, but she was fine. She looked up at Krillin, but he was staring past the destroyed building. Bulma followed his line of sight, and she gasped.

There was a red-skinned alien with long white hair, wearing a variant of the uniform Vegeta and Raditz wore. He was in midair with his back to them, but he had one hand lifted high above his hand. Perched on his hand was a schoolbus filled with terrified, screaming kids.

"Hey Burter!" he yelled out to someone Krillin and Bulma couldn't see. "How long do ya think I can balance this thing on one finger?"

"I don't know, Jeice! Why don't you find out? I'll time you!" came the laughing reply.

Krillin looked back at Bulma, visibly struggling to keep himself in check. "I have to do something to help…"

"But you can't save them without showing yourself!" Bulma exclaimed. "Look, Krillin, just think about this, okay? We can wish everyone back. Right now, we have to help Trunks!"

"You have to help who?"

Bulma and Krillin both spun around in shock, coming face to face with a blue, lizard-like alien who was smirking at them. The alien's eyes settled on Krillin as his smirk spread. He raised his hand up and playfully tapped his green scouter with one finger.

"Should watch those emotions, they'll get you caught every time," the alien snickered. "The Captain mentioned that the Earth had some fighters. While you're not very impressive, he _did_ say that the boy we're looking for is named Trunks. Would that be the same Trunks you were just talking about?"

Neither Krillin nor Bulma responded. Behind them, up in the air, Jeice laughed.

"Guess they got speaking problems now, 'ey Burter? Best make 'em talk."

"I'm most curious about what they meant about wishing someone back. The Captain and Lord Frieza would both love to know about that."

 _Oh, shit_ , both Bulma and Krillin thought bleakly to themselves. The small warrior took a shaky breath. Without them getting Trunks the antidote, everyone was going to die. It was up to them.

It was up to him.

"Here, take this in case you need it," Krillin whispered to Bulma, handing her the rifle. "You go, and I'll take care of these two."

Bulma's eyes widened in alarm, "But, Krillin-"

"I'll be alright," he said, giving her a strained smile. "Just go."

"But-"

Krillin gave no further warning as he suddenly attacked Burter head-on. Bulma wasted no time as she got up to her feet and ran away with speed she never knew she had, holding the rifle close. She stole one glance over her shoulder, but she wasn't being pursued.

It only took Krillin a few precious seconds of fighting to find out that Burter and Jeice didn't know how to suppress their ki. He ducked a punch from Burter and then phased out of sight, appearing around the corner of the alley and hiding his ki.

"Aw ya gotta be kiddin' me! Don't tell me that ya lost him?" Jeice yelled down.

"He's around here somewhere. Don't worry. He didn't get far," Burter assured him, immediately starting to hunt the small Earthling down.

Krillin silently leapt up to a window in a building that was still standing, dropping in and falling out of sight into a vacant apartment. He quickly stood up and looked back out. Jeice was now tossing the bus in his hand up and down, like an impatient child waiting for someone to throw a ball to. Krillin peered down to see Burter looking for him. Shifting his gaze over, he tried picking Bulma out of the crowd that was running away. It wasn't too hard, with the color of her hair.

Slowly, Krillin took a deep breath. It was now or never. Determined now, he climbed back out the window, leapt up to the roof, and then squatted down. Pulling his hand back, a Destructo Disk blade of ki formed over his hand.

Before Jeice's scouter had even registered the spike in power, Krillin had already unleashed his attack with as much speed as he could manage. Jeice's scouter took one second too long to activate, and when he turned around towards the source of power, he was immediately decapitated by the Destructo Disk.

The kids all screamed as the bus suddenly plummeted almost ten stories to the ground. Instead of the crash and immediate death they were expecting though, the free fall slowed down, before the bus dropped again to the ground – this time, only a few feet. Standing outside of the bus, Krillin panted as he stepped back.

He turned around to sneak off and find Bulma, when Burter suddenly appeared out of nowhere right behind him.

"Bad move," Burter taunted.

With that, he fired a vicious ki blast into Krillin's back, and it exited from his chest, to the horror of the children watching inside the bus. Krillin slowly sank to his knees. He just managed to bring one hand up to his chest and feel the warm blood on his fingertips, before he finally collapsed.

Burter kicked the fallen warrior a little to make sure he was dead, and then took a look over at his comrade's decapitated form. Without a word, he spun around and walked away, activating his scouter to talk to the Captain.

* * *

Vegeta was pulling out every last strategic maneuver he knew as he fought for his life, but Recoome was wearing him down. The more he powered up, the easier it seemed that Recoome knocked him back down. The prince was panting, blood in his throat as he took a ferocious beating. He couldn't last much longer at this pace.

As if sensing that very thing, Recoome effortlessly caught a desperate kick aimed at his head in their midair fight. With one motion, he grabbed Vegeta's ankle with one hand, rapidly descended back down, and then brutally slammed Vegeta face-first into the ground as hard as he possibly could. He used so much force that the concrete ground exploded on impact, a noticeable crater forming in its place as smoke rose into the air.

Raditz growled and made a move again to advance, but Goku and Piccolo both grabbed him before he could.

"You can't get involved," Goku whispered to him.

"He's going to kill him!"

"And what are you going to do?" Piccolo snapped harshly. "Vegeta is stronger than you, and he's losing. You can't do anything. And besides, Vegeta still has it out for you, or have you forgotten that?"

"Neither of you understand," Raditz hissed in frustration, wrenching himself free from their grasp. "He is still the prince. It's my duty to help him!"

"The Saiyan race is dead, Raditz. You don't owe Vegeta anything, much less your allegiance," Goku remarked, not understanding Raditz and Vegeta's persistent belief in a code that was dead.

He also didn't understand the cold look of hatred that Raditz passed him after his words. Goku blinked in surprise as his brother got right in his face.

"The Saiyan race isn't fucking _dead_ , Kakarot," Raditz sneered at him. "There are three of us still alive, and as long as Vegeta breathes, our allegiance _is_ to him whether we like it or not."

"Well that sure didn't stop you from almost killing him earlier," Goku pointed out.

"The Oozaru form makes you bloodthirsty, you fool. Only the Elite like Nappa and Vegeta have full control of it," Raditz said, glancing back towards Ginyu. But he was only watching them in amusement. Raditz' voice dropped as he continued, "It doesn't mean I could actually kill him outside of that form if I had the chance. And that sure as hell doesn't mean I can stand and watch one of Frieza's men kill him."

They all glanced back towards Ginyu as he spun around and snarled into his scouter, "What do you mean he's _dead?…_ Well where were you?… Alright, listen to me, and listen to me good. That girl clearly knows where the boy is. Find her, and make her talk. You hear me? _Don't_ make me have to go over there and fix your mess!"

Piccolo cursed under his breath. "Damn it. That doesn't sound good. Something must've happened."

They all looked over as Recoome stood up. With the smoke clear now, the large man brushed himself off. He peered down into the crater at the fallen prince, but Vegeta had yet to move from where he landed. Recoome reached down and grabbed Vegeta by the ankle again, dragging the Saiyan's battered and limp form out of the crater before lifting him up.

"So much for a challenge," Recoome snorted, inspecting the bloodied, upside-down, and unconscious Saiyan prince. He extended his free hand out, aiming it down over Vegeta's face and it started to glow with ki. "Well, it's been fun, Vegeta. But fun doesn't last forever."

Right as he was about to fire, Raditz shot in and surprised Recoome with a hard kick right to the face. Recoome stumbled back in shock, dropping Vegeta immediately before falling down himself.

Raditz landed on his feet, his eyes wide with surprise at his own actions. He had just reacted, years of looking out for Vegeta kicking in out of pure instincts. After all, he had meant what he said; it was one thing to be in the Oozaru form and fight Vegeta to help protect his newfound family. It was quite another to just stand by and watch him fall against Frieza's soldiers.

Maybe part of him also wanted to redeem himself in Vegeta's eyes for his earlier betrayal. He didn't know, but it was too late to back down now. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Goku right behind him, kneeling down next to Vegeta as he examined the prince who was coughing up blood. Goku rolled him over onto his side so he wouldn't choke.

"He's alright for now," Goku said, standing up and coming over to Raditz. "And you _could_ give me a little warning before you do something like that."

"Sorry. Instinct," Raditz bluntly replied.

"You know we might die here, right?"

"Vegeta was likely going to kill me anyways for what I did," Raditz said with a shrug. "Defending him is a much better way to die I think."

"I'll never understand this Saiyan thing."

"One day, brother, you just might."

Goku stared at his brother for a few seconds, frowning in thought. They both looked back at Recoome, who was already back on his feet. For the first time all day, the Saiyan brothers saw real anger on his face as he spit out a dislodged tooth to the ground.

"You're both going to _pay_ for that," Recoome swore.

"Finish them fast, Recoome. We've wasted enough time here," Ginyu barked out.

Raditz and Goku couldn't get out of the way before Recoome suddenly flew right into them, slamming his knees right under the Saiyans' chins. Both Saiyans were sent flying back and crashing through a huge brick building, one of the few left standing. Raditz immediately recovered, blasting back up through the air. Recoome was faster though, phasing in above him and brutally slamming one large elbow right into the back of his head. The Saiyan fell back to the ground, knocked out cold.

He was quickly replaced in the fight by Goku. Piccolo watched them fight from down below, taken aback at how much stronger Goku had become from his training when he saw that Goku was able to land a few good punches on Recoome.

Still, it wasn't enough. Recoome caught a knee aimed at his ribs, and buried his elbow right into Goku's leg, breaking bones on impact as Goku howled in pain. Recoome followed up with a hard punch to Goku's face. Piccolo grit his teeth as he watched Goku take the punishment while he desperately tried to fight back. Goku was giving a good fight, but he was running on fumes by this point. He couldn't last much longer.

The Namekian was debating whether or not to finally join the fight, when suddenly, another warrior appeared, delivering one outrageously powerful blow to Recoome's neck. Recoome was almost knocked out cold as he was shot back to the ground, landing hard in an explosion of smoke and concrete.

Goku coughed hoarsely as he and Piccolo looked over, expecting to see Trunks. Instead, they stared in disbelief at another Saiyan hybrid hovering in the air.

"Gohan?"

* * *

Bulma finally raced across the last block to her home. Her heart sank when she saw that parts of it had already been destroyed. Still, she pressed on, her lungs burning as she panted for air. Looking over her shoulder, she squealed at the sight of Burter flying her way. He was still far, but he was covering ground inhumanly fast.

She ran as fast as she could, but it only took seconds for him to catch up to her. Burter landed right behind the heiress, knocking her down to the grass.

"I want to know where that boy is, so I suggest you start talking," Burter threatened as Bulma sat up and spun around.

Bulma slowly backed up away from him, deep down cursing her rotten luck. She was _so close_ to being home – less than ten yards away. It might as well have been ten oceans with this alien in front of her.

"I don't know where he is-" Bulma started, before squeaking in pain when Burter moved in at the speed of light and grabbed her by the hair, forcing her to stand.

"I don't have time for lies. I need to know where this boy, _Trunks,_ is-"

His words died with a gurgled sputter as he let Bulma go. The heiress fell back to the grass, her eyes wide in shock.

"I'm right here," Trunks growled, one arm wrapped tightly around Burter's throat from behind. His lavender hair was smeared to his forehead from his sweat, his blue eyes clouded over with exhaustion. Yet that did nothing to stop him from driving his sword further into Burter's chest, the superior metal piercing his armor effortlessly.

Trunks looked over at his mother. At the look of horror in her eyes, it suddenly dawned on him that this display wasn't appropriate. Spending so much time with Vegeta, he had become dangerously desensitized to violence. Hell, he even relished in the feel of driving his sword through Burter's chest; it was deserved punishment for threatening his mother.

Slowly now, Trunks withdrew his sword. Burter collapsed in a lifeless heap at his feet while Trunks looked at Bulma, unaware of the blue blood smeared on his sword and jacket.

"Trunks?" Bulma weakly asked.

"The antidote," he rasped out. "Get it for me. Now."

Bulma didn't need to be told twice as she quickly got up and ran off inside. As soon as she did, Trunks' eyes drifted closed and he collapsed from sheer exhaustion, falling flat on his back. He thought he hadn't had any strength left, but once he felt Vegeta's ki signature drop, he forced himself to dig deep and move by sheer will alone. He had figured that he could meet Krillin and Bulma halfway back to shorten the time. Instead, he had stumbled upon a purged West City and felt Krillin's ki signature drop. Faced with the very real possibility that he could lose both of his parents on the same day, he had pushed on, and now he had nothing left.

Trunks barely noticed when Bulma knelt down next to him a few minutes later. She grabbed his hand and pulled up the sleeve of his jacket, before inserting a needle into his wrist.

"I'm sorry that took a bit. The labs were destroyed, but luckily there was enough left so I could mix you up a stronger antidote. This should completely reverse the effects of the D-NAD in just a few minutes."

Trunks gave a small nod, not opening his eyes. Hopefully those few minutes were enough time for Goku and the rest to hang on.

"So, now that we're here…" Bulma awkwardly started. "I have to ask…how, _exactly,_ do I know you in the future?"

"You already know," he sighed.

"What?"

"That's the tone you always use to ask me a question that you already know the answer to," Trunks grumbled, peeking up at her. "So I guess you already figured out that I'm your son."

Bulma was rendered speechless as she gawked down at the teenager sprawled on the grass. She had suspected, but still wasn't prepared to have it confirmed. Examining his features carefully, Bulma was overwhelmed by the myriad of emotions that flooded through her. A son! She had a son…

Her face suddenly turned bright red with fury and disgust, "You mean to tell me that I have a son in the future with that miserable son of a bitch?" she screamed, making Trunks wince.

"Well don't look at me," Trunks defensively said, slowly sitting up. His strength was returning. Just a little longer. "You're the one who fell for him."

"That can't be right," Bulma argued. "I must've lied to you. Maybe you're Yamcha's son?"

Trunks snorted, slowly getting up to his feet. "Believe what you want. Just know that you were never supposed to meet my father this way. And you sure as hell were never meant to meet me right now either. This all got fucked up, and it's all my fault," he quietly said, looking down at his hand as he tried to form a ki ball. Just a few more seconds.

At the self-hatred in his voice, Bulma's eyes softened. Motherly instincts she never knew she had suddenly crawled to the surface as she reached for his arm.

"Trunks…"

The teenager pulled his arm away. "Look, it doesn't matter. Right now I have to help them, so stay inside, and _don't_ come out unless I tell you it's me," he ordered, unconsciously adopting the authoritative tone of his father.

"But-"

Trunks cut her off by firing a ki blast right at Burter's dead body, disintegrating it on contact and leaving a crater in its place. A split second later, his powerful golden Super Saiyan exploded around him. Bulma reached for him again, but he ignored her as he blasted off into the air, racing towards the remaining ki signatures he could feel.

_So much for being born in this timeline…_

* * *

"Gohan?" Goku asked in bewilderment. Gohan blinked, finally coming out of his haze of fury. He had been hiding and watching the battle from afar, unwilling to follow his father's orders to stay away. He had been shaken enough knowing how strong Vegeta was and seeing him fall anyways. But seeing his uncle follow suit, and then his father getting soundly beaten…it was too much, and he had snapped. The little boy looked over to see that Goku was staring at him in blank shock. Down below on the ground, Piccolo was matching his expression.

"Knocked down by a child of all things," Captain Ginyu sighed in irritation as Recoome slowly sat up. "You are close to being replaced on the Force, Recoome."

"Sorry, Captain," Recoome grumbled. "I'll take care of it."

"Tell you what. I'll give you a hand," Ginyu said, earning shocked looks from the Earthling warriors. The Captain smirked, "After all, it's getting quite boring being on the sidelines."

"Gohan, get out of here," Goku whispered, pushing the boy with one arm, forcing his son behind him.

Down below, Ginyu and Recoome were both doing an odd dance with their feet as alternated poses in preparation for fighting together. Piccolo's antenna twitched at the display while Goku and Gohan looked on in confusion. The Namekian suddenly phased out of sight, appearing not too far from Goku.

"Bored on the sidelines too?" Goku quipped.

"Hn," Piccolo grunted, smirking a little. "Vegeta could die for all I care, and I never cared much for Raditz if we're being honest. And honestly, Goku, a part of me _still_ wouldn't mind seeing you bite the dust."

"Oh yeah? Then why are you still around?" Goku challenged, smirking too.

"Because it would be a shame for me to invest so much time training Gohan, just for the boy to die in his first real taste of action," Piccolo smoothly replied, before looking over at the little boy. "So you better get on out of here, kid. No need for you to get mixed up any more in this…what are they _doing?"_ he asked in bewilderment as he gazed down at Ginyu and Recoome who were still doing their dance.

"I don't know," Goku admitted. "But Gohan, you need to-"

He was violently cut off as Captain Ginyu suddenly blasted into the air without warning. With one hard elbow to Goku's neck, he completely and effortlessly leveled the Saiyan, sending Goku crashing down to the ground, joining Vegeta and Raditz in being knocked out cold.

With no hesitation, Recoome fired an open-mouthed, powerful energy beam right at the little Saiyan hybrid who was exposed without his father there to protect him. Gohan froze, paralyzed from his raw fear as he saw and felt the huge, powerful wave coming right at him.

Right at the last split second, though, the boy was roughly knocked out of the way.

Gohan could only watch in horror as his savior and mentor Piccolo took the full impact of the energy beam head on. Piccolo's scream of agony echoed in Gohan's ears, a sound that would haunt the boy's dreams for years to come. Even when there was nothing left of Piccolo, Gohan could only stare as his eyes filled with tears. Piccolo, the same Piccolo who had rebuffed his attempts at kindness, who had only given him a look of disdain when he asked if they could become friends, had just died to protect him.

"Damn. I was aiming for the kid, and the Namekian got in the way," Recoome laughed.

"A noble sacrifice indeed!" Captain Ginyu noted, looking over at the little boy who was the last man standing for the Earthlings. "A pity it will be in vain, since everyone here is going to die anyways."

Gohan slowly turned around, his small frame shaking with rage, his ki skyrocketing as he set his sights on Recoome. The boy couldn't control himself, and he was about to fly down and fight to his death if necessary, when Trunks suddenly phased in right behind him. The elder Saiyan hybrid quickly grabbed Gohan with one arm around his midsection, pulling the boy firmly back against his chest before he could fight.

"Easy, kid. Calm down," Trunks ordered, even though Gohan was thrashing in his hold as he desperately tried to break free. Trunks' grip was unyielding though, and Gohan couldn't break it as he screamed in frustration. Trunks was slightly caught off guard with how much strength he had to use to restrain the boy as he soothingly whispered to him, "I'm sorry that I didn't get here fast enough to save Piccolo, Gohan, but I won't let you die too."

 _Not this time,_ Trunks silently added, as Gohan finally broke down into tears, sobbing miserably as his rage passed and grief overwhelmed him.

"Hey, you two," Trunks snarled dangerously, reaching up for his sword with his free hand, keeping his grip tight on Gohan with his other arm. "My name is Trunks Briefs. I heard you guys were looking for me?"

Captain Ginyu and Recoome both glanced at each other in shock. Still in midair, The Captain looked back at Trunks and reached up to activate his scouter. He let it run for a few seconds, before seeing a power level of just over 80,000. If Frieza hadn't given him a physical description, he wouldn't have believed this was the kid they'd been looking for.

The Captain angrily hissed under his breath in his foreign language. The boy must have been holding his true power back. He needed a plan. Glancing down at Recoome, he opened a telepathic link with his comrade and gave him a simple order: distract Trunks so the Captain could sink the nrehi into him. Recoome nodded as Ginyu looked back at Trunks.

"I'm going to make it real simple for you, kid. You come with us, and we'll spare that boy and the rest of your planet's population, along with your friends down below. You refuse, and we'll take you anyways and kill everyone. What's it going to be?"

Trunks smirked. "I refuse. So, I guess it's your move."

Everything happened faster than anyone except Trunks could see. Recoome shot up into the air at his usual frightening speed, but he was stopped cold halfway when Trunks reached up with one hand, covered Gohan's eyes so he wouldn't see, and then launched his sword down at Recoome like a spear. It was too fast for Recoome to dodge as the sword impaled him in the throat. A split second later, Trunks effortlessly caught the needle thrown at him by Ginyu, only an inch from his neck.

Ginyu gaped as Recoome's lifeless body hit the ground. Trunks slowly turned his head and settled his intense gaze on the Captain, dropping the needle to the ground. He leaned down and whispered to Gohan, "Don't look down."

Gohan nodded as Trunks released his grip on him, protectively maneuvering the boy behind him just like Goku had moments ago.

"Looks like it's 1-0 with me in the lead. Got any other tricks up your sleeve, or are you ready to end this game?" Trunks sarcastically asked.

As a last resort, Ginyu was about to attempt his body switching technique. Before he could do so, Trunks phased in right behind him and fired a powerful ki blast through his back, just like how Krillin died. Ginyu was dead before he hit the ground, and finally, the threat was over.

Trunks lowered his hand as his gaze swept over the ruins of East City. He felt a horrible sense of déjà vu. He had ventured into East City in his timeline, and it looked almost _just like_ this. Something in his heart ached at the thought, before he scanned over Raditz, Goku, and Vegeta, who were all beaten and down for the count. But he could feel each of their ki signatures; all weak, but still there. They would live.

With a heavy sigh that left him feeling drained, he walked over to Ginyu. With little tact, the teenager kicked the corpse in the ribs, forcing the larger alien to roll onto his back. Trunks squatted down and removed his scouter, studying it carefully. The transmission link was live. Someone had been listening in the whole time. Someone still was.

Trunks dusted the scouter off, slipping it on while he walked over to Recoome. He removed his sword, and put it back in his holster, bloodied and all. Lifting his hands out, he gathered up an impressive amount of energy, before firing two blasts that disintegrated the remains of the two elite warriors. With one last shot, he fired at Guldo, giving him the same treatment.

Lowering his hands, he calmly remarked, "So, these are the guys you sent for me? I'm disappointed, Frieza."

There was a dark chuckle through the scouter, before a very familiar voice replied, "Don't be. I just wanted to find you, dear boy, since you _insist_ on running instead of facing me."

"I'm here on Earth and I'm not running. So if you want me, come and get me," Trunks challenged.

"Why, my precious monkey half-breed, your wish is my command. I'll see you soon."

With that, the link disconnected.


	18. Time to Breathe

It wasn't often that a woman discovered that she was destined to one day have a son with a deranged and sadistic murderer. Even for a brilliant and genius heiress, that was a lot to handle.

Bulma's mind was racing as she paced back and forth outside of her damaged home. Her hand was shaking as she raised a cigarette for another draw. After Trunks had left, she had summoned up the strength to go see Yamcha, having some hope that he might still be alive. But he wasn't, and her makeup was ruined from the ensuing emotional breakdown. She had finally managed to pull it together, calling the necessary people to come take his body away. It was easier when she remembered that they had the Dragon Balls to wish him and everyone else back.

But in a cruel twist of fate, his killer was the man she was destined to have a son with. She couldn't help but wonder what she had done to warrant such a shitty destiny.

 _Vegeta._ Even _thinking_ his name made the beautiful heiress shudder in disgust and hatred. How could she have possibly shared an intimate touch with him? He was a psychotic bastard, and Bulma had all the evidence she ever needed to back that up. She didn't know how things were _supposed_ to develop between them, but one thing was certain: in _this_ timeline, she wasn't letting the asshole get anywhere near her, much less touch her.

But then, what about Trunks?

As if on cue, Trunks came into view. He was flying back, and he wasn't alone. Bulma squinted to make sure it was them, and then she sighed in relief. If they were coming back, then the threat was over. Or so she hoped, anyways. The heiress dropped her cigarette on the pavement leading to her damaged home, and extinguished it under her gym shoe as the surviving group of Saiyans and half-Saiyans descended in front of her.

Trunks landed on the grass, his unconscious father slung over his shoulder. The teenager looked his mother over in concern as Raditz landed close behind him. The eldest Saiyan still looked groggy, but he had been the easiest of the three full-bloods to rouse, having suffered the least amount of injuries. Goku was over his shoulder, still out cold. Finally, Gohan landed behind all of them. The little boy looked visibly upset, like he was about to break down into tears at any second. He stepped forward and grabbed onto his uncle's leg, as though he wouldn't be able to stand if he didn't.

"Bulma," Trunks said, drawing her attention back to him. "Are you alright?"

She was about to tell him that no, she was not. She had been stressing out, waiting for someone to come back, her head and back were hurting from her encounters with Vegeta and the Ginyu Force, she was worried sick about Krillin, and she was still upset about Yamcha. But one good look at the roughed up group of Saiyans and half-Saiyans in front of her, and she realized that considerably speaking, she was in good shape.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Where's Krillin?"

Trunks and Raditz exchanged a look, before Trunks looked back at his mother and admitted, "I don't know. One of us will have to go look for him. Listen, can we get some help for my father and Goku? Raditz and I can go look for Krillin while they get looked over."

Trunks glanced towards the medical wing where he'd gone earlier that day. Capsule Corp was the best place to sit down and regroup, which was exactly what Trunks needed. Ever since he'd tackled Vegeta through the wall earlier that day, things had been moving a thousand miles an hour, and now he needed time to breathe.

"Are you seriously asking me to let that asshole back onto my property?"

Trunks winced. He looked back at Bulma, and was almost taken aback by the amount of hatred in her eyes. It was the same look Bulma got in his timeline whenever the topic of the androids came up. It hurt him when he realized that Vegeta had become the equivalent to his mother in this timeline.

"Well, can Raditz at least take Goku inside so he can get help?" Trunks asked, looking at his mother in exasperation.

Bulma's anger melted when she saw the exhaustion in Trunks' eyes. She sighed, "Fine. Just take them both in. There aren't a lot of people in, since almost everyone left with the city being attacked and all, but I know some are still there. They'll know what to do."

Trunks gave her a tired smile of gratitude. He and Raditz turned to go take the two injured Saiyans to the medical wing when Bulma called out, "Trunks!"

The teenager turned around, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Can I talk to you for a second? Before you take him in?"

Trunks turned to Raditz. In a very Vegeta-like move, Trunks silently ordered Raditz to take Goku inside with a hard look and a jerk of his chin towards the medical wing. Raditz nodded; Trunks had earned his respect, proving his worth in battle. Plus, he was Vegeta's son, and with the prince still out cold, Raditz answered to Trunks now. The eldest Saiyan looked down at the boy clinging onto his leg.

"Come on, kid. Let's go inside. You can call your mother, before she has a heart attack," Raditz said, adjusting Goku as best he could. Gohan silently nodded, following after his uncle.

When they were alone, Trunks turned to his mother. Bulma immediately straightened; she had tried to get a glimpse of the unconscious prince while her son had been turned away. Yes, she had already seen him up close and personal, but that was before she knew what kind of role he played in her life. She mentally kicked herself for caring as she looked back at her son.

"Trunks…I don't know about trusting Vegeta-"

"I know that you don't trust him. And I don't blame you after what he did to you. But I promise, he won't hurt you again."

"How can you promise that?" Bulma challenged, crossing her arms. "He beat you in a fight earlier, didn't he?"

Trunks' jaw set at the reminder of that fight. He wanted to be angry at his father for the cheap shot, but he was angrier at himself for actually falling for it. For months while they were in space, Vegeta had drilled into his mind that playing possum was one of the oldest tricks to fall back on in a fight. Then he had fallen for it, hook, line, and sinker.

"He did, but only because he caught me off guard with a cheap shot. Believe me, it will never happen again."

"And you're stronger than him?"

"Yes, I am."

Bulma looked at Trunks for a moment, studying him carefully, before relenting, "Alright…He can be on my property and get help, but only if you're with him, Trunks."

Trunks nodded in understanding, "Thank you. I'll stay with him. Raditz can look for Krillin without me. Oh, and I also have this," he said, awkwardly reaching into his jacket. He pulled out Ginyu's green scouter, extending it towards his mother.

"This was the leader's scouter. He had a live transmission the whole time with Frieza. It's offline right now, but I need you to see if you can give me a location on Frieza, so we can gauge how much time we have before he gets here. I don't mean to rush or anything, but he's on his way to Earth as we speak. So the sooner we know, the better."

"Alright," Bulma agreed, taking the scouter from his hand. "I know about the circuitry from Raditz' scouter, so I'll see what I can do. Hopefully I can get some info from this baby soon."

"Awesome. Thanks." Trunks went to turn away and briefly paused, looking back at her as she scrutinized the scouter. "And for what it's worth…I'm sorry for what my father did to you and your friends."

The heiress looked back up at her son. A son she would never have. She sighed.

"I'm sorry too, Trunks."

Trunks walked away in defeat. She didn't need to tell him her train of thought; he could read his mother like a book. It hurt him to think he wouldn't be born, but his goals were to save this timeline, and then get back to his own timeline, in that order. If Earth could be spared the destruction he grew up in, then he supposed his existence was a small price to pay.

Trunks had barely laid Vegeta down in the same room the prince was in earlier when Raditz came in. The Saiyan came right up behind the teenager as Trunks tried to rouse his father again, patting the side of his face. But the prince was still unresponsive to his efforts.

"How is he?" Raditz asked, looking over the boy's shoulder.

"He'll be alright, as long as he gets some help soon," Trunks answered, frowning as he slid his fingers right under Vegeta's jaw to feel his pulse. He would have been a lot more worried, had he not seen Vegeta suffer through so much worse at the hands of the Tuffles and Frieza. If all of that hadn't killed him before he could get help, then this surely wouldn't either.

"I'll get someone to come check him."

"Alright," Trunks sighed. "How's Goku?"

"Still out. Broken leg, other busted bones. Not bad, considering. He's getting checked out now. It's a good thing the fool is unconscious or he would be having a fit with the needles," Raditz snorted, rolling his eyes as he remembered the last time Goku had required medical attention. He never thought he could be so ashamed of his younger brother until that day. "I also called his woman to come see him and Gohan."

"And you? Are you okay?"

Raditz scowled at the question, not pleased with how easily he had fallen in battle. Sounding impatient, he bit out, "I'm on my feet, aren't I?"

"Good. You can go look for Krillin then while I stay here."

"Krillin's dead, kid," Raditz bluntly spat out. "You know it, and I know it. I don't know why I have to–"

"Raditz, just–" Trunks growled in exasperation, running a hand up through his hair. He was struggling to keep his patience as he snapped, "Just _look_ for him, alright? He might just be hurt or knocked out or something. It won't hurt to look, so just do it. And while you're at it, see if you can get some Senzu beans too, for my father and Goku."

"Well, I'll go look for Krillin, but there are no more Senzu beans. Korin gave me the last one he had earlier today, the one I gave to Vegeta."

 _Of course there are no more beans,_ Trunks bitterly thought to himself. _That would mean something would actually be going right for a change._

"Fine. Just go then, get out of here," Trunks ordered, his tone clipped as he looked back down at his father.

Raditz frowned and walked out of the room, grumbling under his breath, "… _they really are related…"_

Trunks heard him, and looked over his shoulder in surprise. What was _that_ supposed to mean? Before he could make any sense of it, a doctor and nurse came in. Trunks stepped back, and then tried not to hover as they tended to his father.

He finally forced himself to turn around and walk out of the room, Raditz' words ringing in his ears. He had been with his father for months and months in space, and up until now, he hadn't thought much about how Vegeta was changing him. He loved and respected his father, yes, but he did NOT want to be like him. Trunks rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, reflecting on himself lately and not liking what he was seeing.

Trunks was going to step outside for fresh air to clear his mind, when he caught sight of Gohan. The little boy was sitting in a chair outside of Goku's room, his knees drawn up to his chest, his chin resting on his knees. Trunks smiled a bittersweet smile. It was great seeing Gohan again, even if the boy had no idea who he was.

"Hey kid, how you doing?"

Gohan looked up in surprise when the older Saiyan hybrid sat down in the chair next to him. The boy eyed Trunks warily – at first he'd thought Trunks was the enemy. Hell, Trunks had even cut off his tail with no hesitation. But then he had protected him against the Ginyu Force, so now Gohan wasn't quite sure what to think. He relaxed a little bit though when he saw the genuine smile Trunks gave him.

"I'm okay. They're helping my dad," Gohan answered, resting his chin on his knees again.

"They're helping my dad too. They should both be okay though. They're pretty tough." There was a moment of silence between them, before Trunks added, "I'm sorry about your tail, by the way. I was just protecting my dad. No hard feelings?"

Gohan nodded, keeping his eyes ahead. After watching Goku getting pulverized by Recoome, he definitely understood what it must have been like for Trunks. He would have absolutely done the same thing if the situation had been reversed.

"No hard feelings. My mom never liked my tail anyways."

Trunks smirked. "I bet."

"I'm sorry I helped hurt your dad, Mr. Trunks. He was just…kinda scary," Gohan reluctantly admitted, as though fearing Trunks' reaction to his words.

To his surprise though, Trunks laughed out loud. The little boy had no idea that his future counterpart had told Trunks the exact same thing in their alternate timeline – that Vegeta had scared the hell out of him when they first met.

"My dad can definitely be scary, that's for sure. But he's a good guy, if you look deep enough. And just call me Trunks. I'm not that old to be going by 'mister' yet."

"Oh. Okay, Trunks." Gohan looked away, and Trunks' smile slowly disappeared.

"You're thinking about Piccolo, aren't you?" he asked, reading the boy perfectly.

Gohan lowered his eyes to the floor. He released a deep sigh that carried the hurt of an old man looking back on his life with regret. He could feel the tears stinging the back of his eyes. While he easily held them back, he didn't trust his voice to answer, so he stayed silent.

"You know, Gohan. I had a mentor once too. He was killed one night in a fight, and I couldn't stop it from happening because he knocked me out beforehand," Trunks quietly admitted. Gohan's breath caught in his throat as he looked at the older boy. "So I know how you feel, kid. I know exactly how you feel."

"It's not fair," Gohan choked out. Trunks put his hand on the back of the boy's neck, giving a comforting squeeze.

"I know."

Both Saiyan hybrids fell into silence for a while, each drawing comfort from the other in different ways. Trunks was starting to zone out, his thoughts slowly drifting towards the inevitable confrontation with Frieza, when Gohan stood up.

"That's my mom and my grandpa," the little boy exclaimed, finally breaking a smile as he ran over to a window to peek outside. Sure enough, he caught sight of Chi-Chi and the Ox King pulling up in front. Gohan waved to them as Trunks stood up.

"That's great, kid," Trunks absent-mindedly said, his thoughts clouded with thoughts of destiny and screwed up timelines. He was turning around to go see how his father was doing when Gohan called out to him.

"Hey, Trunks?"

"Hn?" he replied, turning back halfway.

"Thanks," Gohan said, giving him a smile of appreciation.

Trunks cracked a small smile in return. "Anytime."

* * *

After getting stitched up and taking some meds of her own, Bulma got to work. It was a couple of hours later, and the heiress was tinkering with Ginyu's scouter in one of her intact laboratories. The scouter was much more advanced than Raditz' scouter, and she had just hit a road block in her progress. She was _so close_ to getting the encrypted data. It didn't help that she was on edge, expecting explosions to randomly start up again, or that she had on the newscast in the background, reporting all the damage that the Ginyu Force caused.

Minutes later, she walked into her kitchen to retrieve Raditz' scouter. It would be a good starting point to figuring out Ginyu's scouter. She found the old scouter right where she left it, on the kitchen table where she had been sitting with Yamcha. Yawning, she grabbed the scouter, and was going to walk back out when she noticed something on the floor. She blinked in surprise, before reaching down to the floor.

There were three Senzu beans on the floor, and she was completely confused for a moment until she remembered that Yamcha had been sitting right there earlier that day. He had been leaning back in his seat. They must have fallen out of his pocket – that was the only explanation. Looking up towards the sky, she mouthed a silent _thank you_ to her fallen lover, before heading over to the medical wing. She wasn't sure about giving a bean to Vegeta, but having Goku healed up and back on his feet would make her feel immensely better about temporarily housing the other dangerous Saiyan.

It didn't take Bulma a long time to find where Goku was. She could hear him screaming as soon as she stepped inside.

"ACK! _No!_ _Get it away from me!"_

"Goku!" she heard Chi-Chi screech, "It's to give you fluids so you can heal faster, so let the doctor do his job!"

There was a whimper of surrender, followed by a moment of silence. Then, more yelling, "No, I can't do it, GET IT AWAY!"

"Hey guys," Bulma brightly greeted as she entered the room.

Goku looked as pale as his bedsheets. His right leg and arm were both in casts, and there were a slew of bandages and bruises on his body. He gave his oldest friend a look that read, _please save me,_ as a doctor stood next to him trying to reinsert the IV that the Saiyan had ripped out just moments ago when he had finally come to. Chi-Chi was standing on the other side of the bed, and to the side, the Ox King was sitting down with Gohan in his lap. They both were wearing blushes of embarrassment.

"Bulma. Will you PLEASE tell this man to stop behaving like a child!" Chi-Chi yelled, pointing down at her husband while she did. She spun back to glare down at Goku, who winced at her look. "I would like my husband back any time now!"

"Aw come on, Chich," Goku whined, eyeing the needle out of the corner of his eye. "I'm a Saiyan, and Raditz said we heal much faster than humans. I don't need that thing!"

"Your brother also said there's some psychotic, crazy freezer alien man coming to Earth! I know you want to fight him but you need to HEAL first!"

"Actually, that's where I can help," Bulma cut in. She held up a Senzu bean, and Goku's eyes immediately lit up. Bulma grinned and tossed it to him, and he caught it with his good hand. "There. Now you can go back to your training with the gods or whatever it was that you've been up to lately."

Goku chewed the bean, eagerly swallowing it. Ten seconds later, he was tearing the casts and bandages off. He stood up, raising one arm in front of him and clenching his fist tightly. He grinned, "Thanks, Bulma, that really hit the spot. Wow, I feel fantastic! Man, Raditz wasn't kidding when he said we get stronger after every fight!"

He laughed as Chi-Chi hugged him right as Gohan charged into him. "You need to train harder so you don't get so injured," Chi-Chi sighed.

Bulma smiled a little as she watched the family together. She snuck out without anyone noticing, her brief good mood disappearing with every step.

All of a sudden, in the most bizarre way, she had a little family of her own. It consisted of a son who was practically already a man, and the father of that son, the man who almost killed her earlier that day. She shook her head and sighed, actually contemplating not giving Vegeta one of the beans. What if he became stronger than Trunks? Then he would probably kill everyone and she would be back to helping him gather the Dragon Balls. The thought made her cringe.

Bulma slowly cracked the door open to the prince's room, peeking in. Vegeta was lying on his side, his eyes closed. His ribs and chest were heavily taped, and there was a bandage wrapped around his head. Trunks was sitting down in a chair right next to the bed, resting his forearms on the edge of the bed as he faced his father. He briefly looked over at the door when Bulma poked her head in. The teenager raised his index finger to his lips, silently telling her to be quiet, before he turned his full attention back to Vegeta.

"Yeah, I did," Trunks whispered.

There was silence for a moment, before Trunks added, "Well, one was already dead when I got there, and I got the two you guys were up against. I got another one on my own."

Silence, and then, "He was blue."

Silence as Trunks frowned in thought, before he said, "No, I didn't see a red one. But I can't sense anyone left, so someone must have gotten him, since you said they can't suppress their ki."

Bulma was intrigued as she fully entered the room. No matter how she looked at the scene in front of her, it looked like Trunks was talking to himself. Vegeta looked like he was still out cold, but Trunks was having a real conversation with him. She had heard Raditz mention telepathy a few times, but had never actually seen it at work. The young heiress leaned back against the wall, folding her arms in front of her, watching them both in amazement as Trunks leaned in closer to the prince.

Trunks blinked in surprise, before a faint smile spread over his face. "Yeah, I'm alright," he quietly answered. "It's out of my system."

Silence, and then, "Yeah, I'm sure."

Silence, and then a heavy sigh from Trunks as his smile disappeared, worry coming over his features. The teenager reached out, putting a hand on the side of Vegeta's neck as though to keep him grounded. "Father, Nappa died a while ago. Remember? You killed him."

A noticeable scowl came over Vegeta's face at that while Bulma blinked in disbelief. She didn't know what blew her mind more – that Vegeta seemed to be some kind of serial killer alien, or that Trunks already knew that and didn't seem to care. Then again, Trunks didn't seem older than 20. He was young and impressionable, and clearly Vegeta was being a horrible influence. He was corrupting _her_ son, and she wasn't going to stand for it.

"Trunks?" she finally called out, wanting a word with him in private.

Before Trunks could even look over at her, Vegeta flinched at the sound of her voice, rolled onto his back, and lifted a glowing palm in her direction. Trunks immediately grabbed his father's hand, forcing it back down right before his mother was blasted to death.

"Hey, easy, take it easy. No one here's going to hurt you, I promise," Trunks assured. Vegeta squinted at his son with effort, before giving a small nod of trust. He rested his head back, struggling with a bout of dizziness over his sudden motion as he closed his eyes again.

Bulma had a hand over her heart as she exhaled slowly. Vegeta was going to kill her before the day was done, one way or another. When she finally caught her breath, she breathed, "Trunks, I need to talk to you."

Trunks nodded. He stood and walked over, leading the way out as Bulma followed him. The teenager turned back to her, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Did you find anything out about Frieza?"

"No, not yet. I'm almost there, I just need a little more time to figure out that encryption."

"Alright. What did you want to talk about?"

"I found these in the kitchen. Yamcha must have had them. I already gave Goku one," Bulma said, showing Trunks two beans in her hand. Trunks lit up when he saw them, a smile spreading over his face. He reached out for them immediately, but Bulma pulled them back. Trunks looked up at her, blinking in surprise. Bulma sighed, "Trunks…I'm trusting you here. I really hope you know what you're doing."

"With Frieza?"

"Well, yes, with him too. But I meant with Vegeta."

"Oh, he's just a little out of it right now, that's all," Trunks said with a careless shrug. "He didn't know who you were, he was just acting on instinct. Don't hold that against him too much."

"How are you okay with what he does?" Bulma finally demanded, putting her free hand on her waist. "I'll have you know that he almost killed me, and that he killed Tien, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha right in front of me!"

"I know what he's done, and he's done a lot worse, believe me."

"And that doesn't bother you?" she asked in exasperation.

Trunks sighed, glancing in through the small window at his father. Vegeta had already drifted off again; he could feel it in his ki. Turning back to Bulma, Trunks dropped his voice, speaking quietly.

"I didn't say that it didn't bother me. But there's a lot more to him than that. Hell, _you're_ the one who used to always tell me there was more to my father than met the eye. Plus, at the end of the day, no matter how much of an asshole he can be, he's still my father. So can I please give him a bean so he's not hurting anymore? Please?"

Bulma hesitated only for a moment, before finally putting both beans in his hand. She didn't trust Vegeta, not one bit, but she trusted Trunks.

"Just be careful around him, okay?" Trunks couldn't help but smile at her motherly tone.

"Don't worry. He's had the chance to kill me a few times now, but he hasn't," Trunks assured her. The heiress stared blankly at him. If that was his attempt to ease her worries, then he had failed. Before she could respond though, Trunks added, "And let's just keep things between me and you, if you don't mind. The less people know about me, the better."

Bulma nodded her agreement, and then Trunks went back into the room with Vegeta. Seconds later, Vegeta was sitting up and tearing his bandages off, while Trunks stood over him. Bulma couldn't help her curiosity as she peeked in through the glass.

"He's not on the planet yet?" Vegeta asked, ripping the bandages off his chest. He scowled when he saw the strange shorts he was now wearing, tugging on them in both curiosity and disdain.

"No, but he's definitely on his way."

"How do you know?"

"I spoke with him."

Vegeta looked back up. "When?" he demanded.

"After I killed Ginyu. He was eavesdropping on the scouter-"

"The others are still alive?" the prince angrily interrupted as he stood up, looking off to the side.

"What? Who?"

"Kakarot and his brat. You let them live?"

"Oh. Well yeah, of course I did. Why wouldn't I? They're on our side."

Vegeta's upper lip curled back in a disgusted snarl while he coldly eyed his son. "After everything we've been through, it seems to me that you still haven't learned a fucking thing, have you?"

"Father," Trunks sighed as Vegeta turned away from him, scanning the room over for his uniform and his armor. He found it all tucked aside in the corner, and went over to retrieve it. His uniform was bloody and ripped in places, and his armor had definitely been put to good use. Vegeta didn't care, getting dressed anyways as Trunks continued, "They're not a threat, I promise. There's no reason to kill them."

" _Not a threat,_ " Vegeta mockingly repeated as he picked up his plate of armor. "Yes, Trunks. We only swooped onto their home planet, and killed half of their friends. They won't _possibly_ want revenge, and we're not at _all_ at risk over being attacked as soon as one of us turns our back. What an _absurd_ idea," the prince sneered nastily, putting his armor on.

Trunks grit his teeth. "No one is going to attack anyone," he repeated in what was quickly becoming his mantra. "I won't let it happen. _They_ aren't going to hurt you, and _you_ aren't going to hurt them."

"Hn. Well, if you refuse to take care of them, then I'll just have to do it myself."

"Like hell you will," Trunks growled.

Silence fell between them after that. Vegeta pulled on his second glove so hard, his fingertips nearly ripped through the fabric. He let go and clenched his fist painfully tight, keeping his eyes on his hand.

"Are you sure you want to go down this road with me again, boy?" Vegeta asked in a deadly calm voice, his back still to Trunks. "I recall that it did not end well for you the last time."

"Yeah, and I recall you saying that you would kill me if given the chance. And guess what? You had your chance and you didn't do it."

Vegeta closed his eyes and cracked his neck in irritation. What could he possibly say in response? The boy was right. The prince changed the subject as he turned around to face his son.

"Look. They have served their purpose against the Ginyu Force. Now they have to die while we focus on Frieza. The only problem here is the same one we always have… your sentimental weakness."

Trunks' eyes narrowed as Vegeta walked right up to him. The prince's stare was intense, but his son didn't look away.

"You thought _I_ played your emotions against you in battle, boy?" Vegeta scoffed. "You're going up against Frieza, and he'll sniff out your weakness and use it against you so fast you won't know what happened. Now is NOT the time for you to get soft, or you'll get us both killed. We can't make afford any more mistakes due to your stupidity, your misguided intuition, and your _feelings._ You understand what I'm telling you?"

Trunks looked away, and Vegeta roughly grabbed his face, forcing him to look back at him as he snarled, "Look at me when I'm fucking talking to you, boy. Do you or do you not understand what I'm telling you?"

Trunks exhaled through his nose, his face burning red in embarrassment. He hadn't even thought up a good response when the door abruptly swung open.

"HEY, YOU JERK! Don't talk to him like that!"

Father and son both looked over in surprise as Bulma angrily stalked in, her patience finally snapped. She had seen enough, and she wasn't going to let Vegeta treat HER son in such a manner. It suddenly didn't matter one bit whether or not she would ever have Trunks in this timeline. In another time and place, she had given birth to him, named him, and loved him. That was enough for her to claim him and defend him, even if that meant standing up to the volatile Saiyan prince himself.

"Bulma, it's fine-" Trunks awkwardly started.

"No, it's not fine, and don't you dare defend him!" Bulma snapped at him, wedging herself between him and Vegeta. The prince could only blink in shock as the bold woman got right in his face, "Trunks is your SON, you asshole! He actually cares about you, and he's probably the only one alive who does! And you treat him like that? Trying to manipulate him to do whatever you want him to do? Why, because you're too weak to take care of Frieza yourself?"

 _Aw, shit,_ Trunks bleakly thought, feeling Vegeta's ki practically cracking in the air like electricity as it soared with his fury. It was the only sign of the prince's rage as he calmly stared back at the female in front of him. The teenager grabbed Bulma around the waist from behind, pulling her back away from Vegeta.

"Well, aren't you a _fiery_ one…" Vegeta dangerously drawled, his eyes lowering to her throat. The prince stared at her pulse with the hungry look of a lion considering his prey. He hadn't killed her yet because he was contemplating how to properly punish her for such blatant disrespect. Should he rip her heart out from her chest? Perhaps a slow decapitation? Burn her alive with his ki, one inch of her skin at a time? The last one was intriguing; she would surely scream for mercy then. Mercy she would not receive.

"Bulma, why don't you go look at Ginyu's scouter? I could really use that information as soon as you can get it for me," Trunks nervously said, recognizing that dark, homicidal look in his father's eyes immediately.

"Trunks, what is wrong with you? You can't let him walk all over you like that!" Bulma yelled, looking at the teenager behind her. "You're stronger than him, kick his ass or something!"

"It really wasn't that bad, he was just giving me some advice."

"Advice? He wants you to kill Goku and Gohan!"

"Don't worry about that. Now come on, go get me that information," Trunks said, practically shoving Bulma along as he steered her towards the door.

Vegeta suddenly appeared right in front of the door, blocking the only exit. Bulma flinched back in surprise, leaning back against Trunks. Real fear shot down her spine at the look of sheer rage on Vegeta's face, and she quite suddenly regretted her impulsiveness.

Trunks growled, his eyes darkening with warning. "Father, get out of the way."

"Stay out of this, boy. After all, it seems to me that this female is in dire need of learning her place. Not to worry though, woman." A smirk of bloodthirsty anticipation spread over Vegeta's face as he trailed his tongue over an exposed canine. "Prince Vegeta, at your service…"

"Fuck you," Bulma spat out. Hatred was not a strong enough word.

The prince chuckled, "That can be arranged before your death, if you insist."

Bulma was immediately pulled back behind her son, and then Trunks was right in Vegeta's face.

"That's enough. You aren't going to touch her, so get out of the way before I make you get out of the way," Trunks swore, his eyes boring right into Vegeta's. The prince's eyes narrowed at the blatant challenge, his fists clenching tightly at his sides. Father and son had a stare down for a few tense moments, before Vegeta broke the silence first.

"Kakarot. Wonderful of you to join us," Vegeta sneered, right as the other Saiyan came up right behind him.

"What's going on here?" Goku demanded, Gohan hiding close behind him.

Chi-Chi had already left with her father, and Goku had been waiting for Raditz to return while simultaneously keeping a close monitoring of the ki signatures of Vegeta and Trunks. Mostly Vegeta. The distrust Vegeta had towards him definitely ran on a two-way street, especially now that the threat of the Ginyu Force had passed.

But after Chi-Chi left, Gohan had told him what Trunks had done for him. Like his son, Goku was torn on who to trust. He was inclined to trust Trunks – he seemed like a genuinely good kid – but he still wasn't fully convinced. He'd gotten suspicious when he felt Vegeta's ki rising, but when Trunks' ki also started to rise in response to the teenager's anger, he had finally come to check things out for himself.

"Nothing's going on," Trunks answered, drawing Vegeta's attention again. Bulma had her hands on Trunks' shoulders from behind, peeking over as her son continued, "Bulma is going to get me some information on Frieza's location, and my father was about to get out of the way."

Vegeta snarled furiously, "This woman is nothing to you, boy, and yet you're attempting to protect her like she's…like she's…"

His words died, and the rage on his face slowly was replaced by confusion. He stared his son in the eye, and then shifted his scrutinizing gaze over to the woman behind him. Bulma could practically see the wheels turning in his head, and she ducked down so she was out of sight behind Trunks.

"Like she's related to him?" Gohan innocently finished.

Everyone turned to look at the little boy in shock, except for Trunks, who closed his eyes. He raised his hand and rubbed at his eyes, sighing as he did.

"What?" Vegeta asked, glaring at the boy hiding behind Goku's legs. "What the hell did you just say, boy?"

Gohan looked confused, as though he had just announced that two plus two was four, and no one had ever heard such a thing. He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. Didn't they already know?

"Well, _aren't_ you, Trunks?" Gohan asked, looking directly at the teenager in the room. "I mean, you said your name was Trunks Briefs when you fought the Ginyu Force, right? Doesn't that mean you're related to Bulma?"

"Gohan, hush," Goku ordered, not liking how Vegeta was staring at his son.

"There you all are," Raditz' voice sounded out as he came into the now crowded medical room. "Wow, you two got back up on your feet fast. So, I couldn't find Krillin, but-"

"Raditz," Goku cut in, and it was only then that his older brother noticed the tension in the room.

Vegeta was blinking in astonishment, barely registering the arrival of his comrade. He was staring at Gohan as he finally put all of the pieces together. Now it all made sense - Trunks had volunteered to accompany Raditz to Earth in the first place. He had said his mother was a technological genius. He had an unnatural interest in this mudball planet. Now they were here, and the teenager looked willing to fight him to the death to protect this woman.

The prince slowly turned back to Trunks, studying his eyes for the truth.

"She's…your mother?"

"What?" Raditz cut in, wondering what he had missed. "Who's his mo-" his words were cut off by Goku's elbow hitting his ribs.

Trunks hesitated for a moment, but he was in way too deep now. There was no point in denying anything any longer. He nodded as he quietly answered, "Yes. Bulma's my mother."

"But…how…" Vegeta struggled for words, before he yelled out, "That's impossible! I've never seen this female before in my life!"

"That's because I'm not from this time. I'm from the future," Trunks finally admitted, earning stunned looks from all the full-blooded Saiyans in front of him. Vegeta in particular looked like he had just lost the ability to think as Trunks continued, "My mother built a time machine, and I used it to come back into the past to warn all of you."

"Whoa! So you're actually here from Earth? _And_ from the future? That's wild!" Goku exclaimed.

Trunks sighed. "I'll explain everything…"

And he did. Trunks told them as much as he could about what _should_ have happened in this timeline. Then he told them about the true reason for his visit – warning them about the arrival of the androids. He told them about Goku's heart virus in the future. He told them that they were all supposed to die except Bulma and Gohan. He told them that he had lost the heart virus antidote in space, and that his time capsule had been destroyed, so he was stuck in this time for now.

Ten minutes later, Bulma was lightly massaging Trunks' shoulders from behind, taking subtle glances at Vegeta while she did. Raditz was eyeing his brother awkwardly, now fully aware of how their first encounter with each other should have gone. Goku was standing at the window, blankly gazing out, trying to come to terms with the fact that he was _the one_ – the one to achieve the state of the Legendary, the one to destroy Frieza once and for all, the one to save billions of lives. Gohan was staring at Trunks in awe, now aware that he was the mentor the older boy had been talking about earlier. Far from being distressed over his own demise in the future, Gohan was thinking how cool it was that _he_ had trained Trunks personally.

Vegeta was sitting down on the edge of the bed in the room, glaring at the wall, clenching the sheets so tight his knuckles matched them in color. He felt foolish for not figuring out the truth about Trunks earlier, despite the myriad of clues in front of him. He was enraged beyond belief that Goku, nothing but a third class Saiyan, was the one destined to avenge their race against Frieza, not him. He was ashamed that not only was he destined to fail, but he was also destined to die at Frieza's hand.

And, he couldn't quite pinpoint the feeling inside over Trunks not only keeping the truth from him for so long, but telling Bulma before him. He finally categorized it as betrayal. A person more in tune with his feelings would have called it hurt.

"I can't stay here forever," Trunks said, cutting the extremely awkward silence. "My mother in my timeline is by herself. I _have_ to go back as soon as possible. She can't defend herself against those androids. I might be able to come back to help you guys against the androids, but I need Goku to become a Super Saiyan.

"But, I don't know now," the teenager admitted, looking Goku over out of the corner of his eye. "No offense, but I'm not sure you're strong enough as you are, Goku. I'm not sure _any_ of you are strong enough," he added, missing the way Vegeta flinched at his words. "So that means I have to beat Frieza myself. I could do it, but then, when the androids get here…I just don't know."

"Well, first thing's first. The priority is Frieza. We have to beat him, no matter who does it," Goku sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. "So if you can do it, Trunks, then I think that's the best thing. We could always train afterwards for the androids, and you could go home with a wish from the Dragon Balls."

"And if the Dragon Balls won't work, I'll build another time machine if I have to. You'll get home, I promise," Bulma assured.

"But we have to go to Namek for the Dragon Balls, since Piccolo died," Raditz pointed out.

"Yeah, but Frieza's on his way here to Earth. We might as well wait to go to Namek until we beat Frieza. Then we can repair any more damage with the Dragon Balls," Goku suggested.

"What if Frieza's on his way to Namek though, like in Trunks' time?" Raditz pressed, looking anxious.

"He's not, you fool," Vegeta angrily cut in, massaging one of his temples. "He would only be overhearing Ginyu's scouter. So unless you idiots mentioned the Dragon Balls after I was knocked out, then we should be in the clear. Plus, Trunks challenged him directly. Trust me. Frieza's coming to Earth as we speak."

"Well, maybe Raditz and my mother can go to Namek, and get the Dragon Balls while we stay on Earth and wait for Frieza," Trunks suggested.

"Hn. Why doesn't that idiot female do something useful first, and actually find out where the hell Frieza is?" Vegeta snarled, eyeing Bulma out of the corner of his eye. "That is, if she actually _has_ the expertise she boasts about."

"How DARE you talk about me like that in my own home!" Bulma shrieked, as Trunks grabbed her around the waist to keep her from advancing towards his father. "Screw you, you jerk!"

Vegeta scoffed, "Not in _this_ timeline, bitch."

"Hey, don't talk to her like that," Goku snapped as he turned towards the prince, "That's the mother of your son, Vegeta."

"Yes," Vegeta sneered, his dark eyes turning ice cold as they shifted to lock on his son's, "The mother of a son I never asked for and never wanted. Aren't we just a happy little family?"

Trunks winced. His father hadn't looked at him with such contempt in a very long time. The teenager couldn't maintain eye contact for more than a few seconds, needing to look away.

"Don't listen to him, Trunks," Bulma whispered from behind him. "He's just a huge jerk."

"It's okay. My father's right anyways. We need Frieza's location before we bother planning more," Trunks quietly relented.

"How long will it take for you to get that information, Bulma?" Goku asked, wondering if he might be able to head home for a while.

"Not long. Maybe an hour or two. I'll go get on it," Bulma said, heading out to do just that. Vegeta subtly watched her out of his peripheral vision as she left, before quickly averting his gaze when Trunks looked back at him.

"Dad?" Gohan whispered.

"Yeah, Gohan?"

"Can I go to Namek? I want to help wish Piccolo and everyone else back."

Goku smiled, "We have to take care of business on Earth first. We'll see what your mom says, but I don't see why not."

"So, you were destined to kill me, huh?" Raditz roughly asked, drawing his brother's attention. Goku chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head.

"Wellllll…kinda, but this timeline turned out much better than that, don't you think?"

Vegeta sucked at his teeth, about to yell at them all to shut the hell up. He wasn't in the mood to hear their mindless garbage. Just as he was standing up to do just that, Bulma came back in, her features fallen in hurt and loss.

"I just got a call from one of the hospitals in the suburbs. Krillin…he's gone," she admitted, her voice cracking as she did. Trunks sighed, putting his arm around her shoulders. Raditz and Vegeta were both completely unaffected by the news, but Goku looked like he had been dealt a physical blow. The youngest Saiyan turned away, his shoulders falling.

"It's alright, we'll wish him back. Don't worry," Trunks said, trying to offer some kind of comfort.

Vegeta turned to Raditz, who was leaning back against the wall, and demanded, "Which one was Krillin?"

"The short, bald one."

Vegeta laughed out loud, drawing Goku's attention. "Baldy wound up dying anyways! Serves the little shit right. He isn't worth wasting a wish on-"

His words were violently cut off by a hard punch to the jaw from Goku, who moved in so fast that by the time Trunks realized what was happening, the two Saiyans were already brawling on the floor. Vegeta was valiantly trying to fight back, but his words had struck a nerve at the wrong time. Goku was brilliantly pissed off, and it actually took both Trunks and Raditz to finally pull him off Vegeta.

"Miserable, third class son of a bitch!" Vegeta seethed, getting back up to his feet. He wiped the blood off his busted lip, and then pulled his hand back, a bright blue ball of ki immediately appearing over his palm. He pulled it back while he snarled, "You will pay dearly for that-"

"Stop it!" Trunks yelled, standing between his father and Goku. The latter was barely being restrained by Raditz. "We have to work TOGETHER! That's the only way we're going to get through this!" He looked at Vegeta in exasperation. "Father, please."

Vegeta glared at Trunks for a few tense seconds, before extinguishing the ball of ki. He spit a mouthful of blood on the floor and sneered, "Fine. But like you said, Trunks. You won't be staying in this time forever."

He didn't have to articulate his threat any further, passing his glare of promised murder from Goku, slowly over to Bulma, who fought the urge to shrink back. Vegeta's lip twitched, before he turned and walked back over to the window. One hard punch, and the glass shattered completely. Then he was gone.

"Way to go, Kakarot," Raditz growled, letting his younger brother go. Goku was still angry and resentful, not just for Vegeta's callous remarks, but for the destruction the prince had caused in such a short time. He reminded himself though that Vegeta was destined to become an ally to them, and that helped calm him down a little bit. "Now he's going to purge your damn planet!"

"He won't," Trunks knowingly said, gazing off in the direction his father had flown off to. "He just needs time alone. That's all."

"I'm sorry," Bulma regretfully added. "I just wanted to tell you guys. I didn't think _that_ would happen-"

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. You already know what we need," Trunks said.

"I'll get on it, right now," Bulma affirmed with full confidence. She had all the motivation she ever needed, and was already aiming to crack the encryption on the advanced scouter in record time.

"Alright. It's getting late. I think I'll take Gohan back home, and then come back here to see where we're at."

"But Dad, I'm not tired," Gohan whined.

"No buts. Now let's go," Goku gently ordered, pushing the little boy along. He glanced over at Raditz, "I should be back before the hour, but if Bulma figures it out sooner, raise your power so I know."

"I will."

Soon, it was only Raditz and Trunks in the room. The teenager was emotionally and mentally drained as he collapsed into a chair in the room. Raditz looked over at him, studying him curiously.

"You alright, kid?"

Trunks nodded, one hand covering his eyes. He felt exhausted. Raditz came over and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't look so miserable, half-breed. That's just how Vegeta is."

"He's just so difficult sometimes," Trunks mumbled.

"Yeah, but I'm still alive, aren't I? A year ago, he would've already killed me for fighting against him. I don't know what went down since I left you guys on Rithica, but he's different."

"I guess."

"Focus on Frieza, not Vegeta. That's your role now, in this timeline. You're the one now. You're the avenger. It's up to you."

Trunks nodded, looking up at Raditz warily. "I thought you hated me."

Raditz chuckled, before turning to walk away. "Vegeta's not the only one who's different now, kid."

Trunks stared after him. He had no response for that.

* * *

Later that night, Vegeta dropped down from a tree on an unsuspecting tiger, a blade of ki formed on his hand. The animal was dead almost on impact, landing with a thud in the dark grass. Vegeta straightened and shot a blast to form a fire to cook his dinner.

A half hour later, the prince was sitting cross-legged up against a rock, eating half-raw tiger meat while he brooded over the situation he found himself in. He was prone to having bad luck. Horrible luck, even. But this was beyond ridiculous. The outline Trunks provided him disgusted and shamed him. Settling down on this mudball with a human woman and a life of mediocrity, then being destroyed by androids. Small wonder he died in the future timeline. He had grown soft and weak.

Then there was Trunks. In retrospect, Vegeta had suspected that Trunks' age was off, but it wasn't like _"he must be from the future"_ was an obvious, everyday conclusion. Plus, in one long infiltration mission when he was younger than Trunks, he had bedded some females that aged faster than Saiyans. He figured Trunks was the result of one of those drunk nights and hadn't pushed the topic further.

But _that_ woman as his mother? The blue haired woman was very alluring and pleasing to the eye, yes. He wasn't surprised to find out he had taken her to his bed. With her fire and feistiness, he was sure she was a great lay. But he _was_ surprised that he let her live long enough to bear him a son.

Then again, he wasn't going to let it happen in this timeline, so it really didn't matter. As soon as Frieza was defeated, he was leaving this planet to rid the universe of Frieza's army for good. He was not going to stay on Earth like his future counterpart. He was not going to settle. He was better than that.

Vegeta ripped the meat off a bone, chewed thoughtfully, and then threw the bone into the fire. He swallowed as he sat back, before he sneered, "You have to be more subtle than that to sneak up on _me,_ half-breed."

"I figured. Thanks for not trying to go on a purge, though. I appreciate it."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. It had definitely crossed his mind to purge Earth, but there was no real point in doing so. Besides, Trunks would have stopped him anyways.

"What the hell do you want? To join me in my meal? Or do you have more delightful secrets to share with me?" Vegeta bitterly demanded.

"Father…I'm sorry I didn't tell you the truth earlier," Trunks sighed, coming out of the shadows at last and into the light of the fire.

"Hn." Vegeta's eye twitched as he looked down at his kill, violently ripping another bone free off the dead tiger.

Trunks cringed a little, before continuing, "I was just worried about being born in this timeline. That's all."

"You won't be," Vegeta growled. "Problem solved."

"Yeah. I figured," Trunks mumbled in defeat, his shoulder slumping as he buried his hands into his jacket.

"Has your _mother_ actually done something useful and gotten a location on the lizard bastard?"

"Yeah."

"How long?"

"Just under three days away."

Vegeta looked up at Trunks, blinking in surprise. "Three days?"

"Yeah. Not a heck of a lot of time, I admit."

The prince tossed the bone with meat aside, where it rolled on the grass. He had suddenly lost his appetite. The fight he'd waited for his whole life, just around the corner. Anxiety settled into his stomach at the thought. It was going to be over soon – one way or another.

"I hope you're ready then, kid," he gruffly said, crossing his arms as he stared into the flames. "There's no room for error now."

"I know. I talked to Goku, and he said there might be a way for us to get some good training in before Frieza gets here. Neither of you two are powerful enough right now, but maybe if I help you both out, I can get one of you to that level. Ideally, get both of you to that level."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Stupid boy. What kind of strength would we gain in three days time?"

"He said there's a place on this planet where we could get one year's worth of training in just one day," Trunks said, immediately getting his father's attention.

"What? How?"

"I don't know. But I figure I could spend time in there with you, and then with him. Then when I go back home after Frieza's been killed, you'll both be ready for the androids. Assuming of course that I can come back to give Goku the antidote," Trunks sighed, shaking his head. There were one too many "ifs" that had to line up correctly for everything to work out, but it was best to take it one step at a time for now.

Vegeta looked back down at the fire, his mind racing. He could make considerable progress in one year. Hell, if he could close the distance between himself and Trunks, then _he_ could beat Frieza. Or at least, help the odds. Frieza would no doubt come with an ace up his sleeve to compensate for Trunks' power. If he and Goku got some training in, though…

It was an easy decision. He could either stand on the sidelines, be a spectator, and probably die in the process – or he could train, grow stronger, and actually contribute. He wasn't one to train with others, but if he trained with Trunks, the boy could help him ascend faster than if he trained alone.

And then he, too, could be a Super Saiyan.

"So, what do you say? You want to do this?" Trunks asked, breaking the awkward silence almost a minute later after giving his father time to think.

Vegeta stared at the fire for a while longer. Finally, he stood up, dusted himself off, and turned to face his son.

"When do we start?"


	19. Burned to the Ground

When Trunks and Vegeta had both been in space together traveling to Earth, they had sparred every single day, without fail. Naturally then, Trunks felt comfortable as he and his father finally entered the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to get a year's worth of training before Frieza's arrival on Earth. After all, he had already been there, done that with his father. The only difference was that they weren't on a space ship, and the gravity was slightly increased in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Trunks knew exactly what to expect, and was eager to start their training to help his father ascend.

In retrospect, he had no idea what he was getting into.

Trunks thought he knew how intense his father could be, but this was beyond anything he'd seen from the prince in all the time they'd spent together. Vegeta had become a man possessed in his pursuit to also become a Super Saiyan. Before, the sparring had been mostly for Trunks' benefit, to teach him techniques and strategy beyond just using raw strength. In addition, Trunks and Vegeta had both been limited in space, since firing ki blasts would have destroyed the space ship.

Now, all bets were off. The "training" was composed of brutal, ruthless, violent battles between father and son. Any outsider looking in would have thought Trunks and Vegeta were sworn enemies trying to literally kill each other. Ki blasts were used, and used often. Any and all dirty fighting tactics were used, whenever possible. Cheap shots were on the table, immediately used whenever the other dropped their guard. Trunks put his sword to good use, and more than once, Vegeta's hands had been almost ripped apart, his palms shredded and dripping in blood from trying to block the weapon. More often than not, the grueling days would end only when Vegeta passed out from raw exhaustion. Trunks would carry him back to their chambers, and each time, he would tell himself that the next day couldn't possibly be more intense. Each time, he was wrong.

There was almost a month left now. Vegeta was getting restless. He had gotten much stronger, but he still hadn't made his Super Saiyan transformation. Trunks kept insisting he was getting close, but the boy had been saying this for months.

"Stop fucking lying to me, boy!" Vegeta furiously yelled in Trunks' face one day when he'd had enough. The prince was down on one knee, panting for air from their latest fight. Trunks was bent over and offering him a hand, but Vegeta wasn't having it. Not today. He angrily shoved the teenager's hand away from him.

"But, Father, you _are_ close," Trunks insisted, out of breath too. "We still have time-"

"No. This isn't working," Vegeta hissed in frustration, shakily getting back up to his feet. He gave Trunks his back while he stared at the white abyss of nothing. "I'm missing something…"

"Maybe it's an emotional response that you need?" Trunks suggested as he wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. "I wasn't able to ascend until I found Gohan after he died. Maybe what you need to do is think about who you've lost?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes in disgust. "Spare me, boy. I have lost no one that matters."

"What about your father?"

"Died because he was too weak."

"Your mother?"

"Even weaker."

"Father…you mean to tell me that you didn't care at all when either of them died?" Trunks pressed disbelievingly.

"Of course I cared at the time, you idiot," Vegeta snapped as he turned back around to face his son. "I was a child. Children are emotional. We've already gone over this. "

"Well, maybe you can use that-"

"No," Vegeta sharply cut in, shaking his head. "It won't work."

"How do you know?"

"Because I don't care about them anymore," the prince spat out in a cold voice, before trudging off towards their chambers.

Trunks stared after him, scowling as he thought to himself. Vegeta was close; he could feel it when they fought. But for some reason, his father just seemed unable to tap into his true power. If it wasn't a physical block, then was it a mental block? And if that was the case, how could he help Vegeta get through it?

The answer came to Trunks immediately, but he hesitated. It could backfire and destroy the relationship he worked so hard to build with his father. He cringed a little at the thought. But, what if it worked? Nothing else was working.

He took a shaky breath, before nodding to himself with determination. It was worth the risk.

Vegeta was very slowly shuffling away, his hands on his hips as his breathing came out raggedly. He was exhausted and frustrated with himself for his lack of progress. Raising a shaking hand to rub at his eyes, he was contemplating taking a few days off to rest, when Trunks suddenly phased in right behind him.

Before the prince could even finish blinking, his son quickly wrapped his arm around his throat from behind, roughly wrenching him backwards. Vegeta's eyes were wide with shock –Trunks had never forced them to continue when it was clear that he was done for the day. His shock melted into anger when he felt a painful blow to the back of his legs, forcing him to drop to his knees.

Trunks tightened his grip around his throat as Vegeta struggled furiously to break his hold. Trunks easily exerted his superior and overwhelming strength, no longer holding back as he forced Vegeta to feel just how huge the power difference between them still was.

"What's the matter? Can't fight back?" Trunks taunted, sounding an awful lot like his father. He tightened his grip even more, making Vegeta's face turn blood red. "I should've known you were too weak to train with me. I don't know why I brought you in here in the first place. Should've just brought Goku in here and trained him for two years. At least then I would have a challenge."

Vegeta was shaking with fury, reaching back with one hand in a desperate effort to break Trunks' grip. Trunks grabbed his arm with his free hand and hooked it against his side with ease. Vegeta tried to take to the air, if only to gain some kind of leverage. Almost immediately, he felt Trunks' power skyrocket as the boy ascended to his Super Saiyan state. Trunks easily held him in place as Vegeta thrashed against him to break free.

The prince's vision was starting to darken from the excruciating pressure on his throat. His thrashing and struggling became even more desperate. Trunks had never gone this far before, and he couldn't help but wonder, was his own son trying to kill him?

"Feel that power? That's what a _real_ Super Saiyan feels like. And guess what? You're never going to have that power. So why don't you just say that you give up already, so you can get the hell out of here and Goku can finally come in? Look at you, you're a goddamned waste of my time."

Vegeta's ki was snapping around them in response to his rage and desperation. The prince wasn't aware of his power, only focused on trying to get himself free. He was soaked in sweat, his eyes squeezed shut and his veins throbbing as he feverishly tried breaking free from Trunks' grip, to no avail.

But Trunks was well aware of how quickly his father's ki was skyrocketing. His mouth was almost watering with anticipation – just a little more…

"You say that you don't care anymore about your parents dying? Want to know what I think? I think you're lying. I think you pretend you don't care because you know it was YOUR fault that they died. You were too weak and too soft to save them-"

Vegeta's power exploded around him with so much force, it almost broke Trunks' hold altogether. Trunks recovered fast, but the prince didn't even notice. He was only aware of the fire breathing right underneath his skin, the breath of an animal inside that was begging to be unleashed. Vegeta was shaking badly as he grabbed onto Trunks' arm around his throat, certain he was about to die. He was desperately fighting to bring his power under control while Trunks screamed for him to do the exact opposite.

"Let it go, Father!" Trunks shouted right in his ear. "LET IT GO!"

Vegeta screamed right as his powerful blue aura flickered gold for just a small, fraction of a second and his dark eyes briefly sparked teal. Just as fast though, the power slipped out of Vegeta's grasp before he even noticed it was there. It was too much, way too much, and he couldn't breathe. His power dropped, and he blacked out.

Trunks sat down as he grabbed his father and pulled him backwards so he was leaning back against him. Vegeta was still trembling, but Trunks couldn't keep the huge grin off his face if he tried, having to resist the urge to shout in triumph. All their hard work was going to pay off. Vegeta hadn't transformed, no. But he'd come damn close.

He let Vegeta's erratic breathing settle down, before he gently shook him by his armor.

"Father." Trunks shook his armor again, making Vegeta wince as he started coming around. "You almost did it!"

"What…?" Vegeta rasped, feeling lightheaded as he slowly opened his eyes.

"You almost became a Super Saiyan!" Trunks yelled in bright excitement.

"Hn. Son of a bitch," his father whispered.

Trunks couldn't quite tell if Vegeta was marveling over coming so close, or cursing him for what he'd done and said. He helped his father slowly stand up, the excitement in his eyes giving way to uncertainty as he wondered how much damage he'd done.

"Father…you know I didn't mean what I said…" Trunks regretfully started, "I'm sorry, I just-"

"Kid, shut up," Vegeta grumbled, putting his arm around Trunks' shoulders to remain standing as he leaned against him. His son instinctively steadied him. "If you were smart, you would've done that sooner."

Trunks smiled a little in relief. "Yeah, I guess so. It would've spared us both a lot of fighting."

"You wish."

Trunks helped Vegeta walk back in silence. The prince was practically out on his feet when they got back. When they got to his bed, Vegeta collapsed onto it, instantly falling into a deep, healing sleep. Trunks checked him to make sure he was fine, before leaving for his own quarters. He was feeling extremely confident. They didn't have much time left, but a month would be enough. He was sure of it.

But the days came and went, and Vegeta never got that close to becoming a Super Saiyan again. Father and son tried a mix of different things. More fighting. More baiting by Trunks. More rest. They even tried more food. Nothing worked. They were stuck, and the days kept slipping away.

There was only one day left now, and Vegeta was pissed off. Granted, he was usually pissed off, but today was much worse. He was brooding, and Trunks had been careful to avoid him almost all day. A difficult task, considering where they were. They weren't training at all that day, having decided long ago that their last day would be dedicated to rest. But it was time to eat, and getting food was Trunks' job.

The teenager was in the large food pantry now, frowning as he examined the scraps of food left. There wasn't much left, and they had to cut their usual meal sizes down over the last few days to make things last. Honestly, Trunks was surprised their supply had lasted so long.

"There's a little bit of ham left," Trunks finally called out. "That alright?"

"I don't care," Vegeta angrily bit out. He was sitting at the small table, glaring at the doors leading out.

Trunks sighed as he emerged with half a ham to split between them. "Father, you've gotten much stronger. I know that the transformation didn't happen, but-"

"Shut the fuck up, half-breed."

They fell into silence. Trunks split the ham between them, sitting down across from his father. Vegeta ate quietly, but Trunks didn't have much of an appetite. He wasn't looking forward to spending even _more_ time in this place, though he imagined the training wouldn't be as intense with Goku. At least, he surely hoped not.

"I don't understand why you insist on spending a year in here with that fool, Kakarot," Vegeta finally said once he finished his ham. The food in his stomach had taken the edge off his temper enough to for him to engage in actual conversation. "You and I can both do another year in here."

Trunks looked up from his untouched ham, and raised an eyebrow. "When I go back to my timeline, are you going to stay and protect the Earth against the androids?"

"No."

"That's why I'm going to help Goku train too," Trunks knowingly said, smirking a little. "Just covering my bases."

"Bases?"

"Never mind."

"Hn. Perhaps I'll just kill Kakarot for my own entertainment, and then take over the planet myself. What do you think of _that_ , boy?" Vegeta questioned, reaching over and taking the ham off Trunks' plate.

"Good thing I know your fighting secrets, so I can give them to Goku."

"Good thing I didn't tell you all my secrets."

"You aren't really going to fight him, are you? There aren't many Saiyans left."

"Yes, but he is destined to become stronger than me," Vegeta answered with an indifferent shrug. He tossed the last piece of ham into his mouth.

"So? I'm stronger than you."

"That's different. You're my son. You have the blood of an Elite. He is third-class garbage, just like his brother. I _will_ kill Kakarot, and enjoy it too."

Trunks sighed, running a hand through his loose lavender hair. "Father, I need him to help against the androids…"

Vegeta chuckled over his son's distress, "Don't worry, boy. I won't kill your precious savior…yet. I will wait until the androids are destroyed. By then, Kakarot should have achieved his full potential. Then my victory will be truly sweet."

"So you _are_ going to stay on Earth then, when I leave?"

"Are you deaf, or are you just trying to annoy me? I already told you no. With Frieza and his top men out of the way, I will be the strongest warrior in the universe. I will become emperor, and the universe will bow at my feet. Then when enough time has passed, I will return to Earth, kill Kakarot once and for all, and then bring Earth into my empire."

"Sounds like you got it all figured out."

"I do."

"I wish you'd stay though."

Vegeta snorted. "You just want me to stay and fuck your mother so you'll be born."

"Well…" Trunks awkwardly said, blushing with discomfort over his father's bluntness. "… _Yeah_ , it'd be nice to be born, but it's not all about me. It's about you too. Earth was your home in my timeline. And I know you don't want to hear it, but you _did_ care about my mother-"

"Enough," Vegeta snarled, getting up to his feet. His palms were on the table as he angrily leaned forward towards his son. "Listen to me good, boy, because I won't tell you this again. I will have my destiny, and no female or half-breed son will stop me."

"But Father… _we're_ your destiny."

"My destiny is to rule, boy. Always has been. You and your mother were nothing but mistakes."

Trunks nodded, easily keeping the hurt out of his eyes. It didn't matter anyways because Vegeta was already walking away, heading towards his personal quarters to get rest. Trunks sighed, looking up towards the clock. It wasn't the first time Vegeta had called him a mistake. It probably wasn't going to be the last. It didn't matter. They had bigger things to worry about.

Finally, the next day, father and son both walked out of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, with Trunks in the lead. Goku and Mr. Popo were standing there, with Raditz hanging back a distance away by himself. Goku brightened when he caught sight of Trunks. Ever since hearing that he was Bulma's son from the future, his perspective on Trunks had changed quite a bit. His smile waned a little, however, when Vegeta came up right behind his son. The prince's arms were crossed over his now-battered armor, and he was wearing an aloof, almost bored look on his face, like no one there was worth his time.

"I will make sure to restock the supplies for another year of training," Mr. Popo announced. Goku gave him a nod, and Mr. Popo left to take care of business.

Vegeta and Goku then made eye contact, and not for the first time, Goku wondered if it was wise for him and Trunks to both step away for a day. With both of them training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Vegeta would become the strongest warrior on the planet. For all he knew, he'd walk out of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and his home planet would be burned to the ground. Not a comforting thought in the slightest, especially when he saw Vegeta's eyes darken at the sight of him.

"Man, it feels great to be out of there," Trunks brightly said, stretching a little, oblivious to the tense stare-down between his father and Goku. He looked over, and Goku made eye contact with him. "Do you mind if I have at least a few minutes before I go back in there? It _has_ been a year, you know."

"Oh, sure! Take all the time you need, Trunks. We still have two days, after all," Goku pointed out, grinning. "So how'd the training go?"

Trunks shrugged a little, "It was-"

"Shut up, boy," Vegeta roughly interrupted, making Trunks look back at him. "You are not to discuss our training with that fool. _Ever._ Understand?"

Trunks nodded, and looked back towards the other Saiyans. "How are things out here? Anything new?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary, except humans panicking because they're now aware that aliens attacked their cities," Raditz said, shrugging with indifference.

"We'll repair all the damage later with the Dragon Balls," Goku added.

"Alright. Let me just get some fresh air for a bit, then we can go ahead and get started," Trunks said, looking back at his father as they had a silent, mental exchange. Vegeta nodded, and they both walked away from the Saiyan brothers.

When they were as far as they could get, Vegeta stopped walking and looked at his son in annoyance. "We've been training together for a year. What the hell do you have to tell me now, that you couldn't tell me before?"

"Here," Trunks said, digging out the last Senzu bean from his pocket. He extended the bean to his father. "You hang onto this for now. It was hard as hell not to use it when we were training and things got rough. I don't want to be tempted for another whole year to waste the only bean we have left. We might need it in a couple days when Frieza gets here."

"Hn. _I_ won't need it-"

"Father," Trunks sighed. "Please, just hold onto it for me."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. He reached out for the bean, but his son grasped his hand when he did, pulling him closer. The prince raised an eyebrow at the serious look on Trunks' face.

"What?" Vegeta demanded.

"I'm trusting you here."

"I'm not going to eat the blasted thing, stupid boy."

"I know you won't, but that's not what I meant."

It only took a moment before Vegeta realized what Trunks was asking. They stared at each other for a few tense seconds. Finally, the prince exhaled slowly, as though in defeat. He pulled his hand away, holding the bean now in his fist. He eyed his son over, before looking away and staring off at nothing.

"There will be no bloodshed on this planet while you are gone," Vegeta grumbled. "At least, not by my hand…for now, anyways," he added under his breath.

"Father, I'm serious."

"So am I."

Trunks took a deep breath, before nodding. The promise was good enough for now. "Fine then. Remember, I'm trusting you."

"I'm not fucking deaf, you moron," Vegeta angrily hissed. "Now get over there to train the third-class dog. The faster you do so, the faster you'll be done."

"Alright. See you in a day?"

"Hn."

Vegeta turned around to give his son his back, looking over the edge of the Lookout. Trunks sighed and walked away, going back over to Goku and Raditz. Vegeta easily tuned them out, thinking about how easy it would be to go back on his word. He could kill everyone on the planet before his son and Goku were done. It would be useful to have no humans to worry about when Frieza landed on the planet… he cocked his head to one side, instinctively contemplating the best approach to purge the planet.

His eye was twitching when he felt Goku and Trunks go into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Now no one could stop him from tearing the whole planet to pieces. He was seriously tempted the more and more he thought about it. Just a few kills, to make himself feel better over his failure to become a Super Saiyan. Maybe just a city or two…it had been so long…

Raditz' voice suddenly cut through his murderous thoughts, "Vegeta?"

The prince scowled, turning back to face his old subordinate. His glare was cold, and it made Raditz stop where he was and not come any closer. The large Saiyan swallowed heavily, recognizing the bloodthirsty look in the prince's eyes.

"What?" Vegeta barked harshly.

"Just wondering if you wanted to get something to eat. Kakarot's woman cooks well, if you're interested," Raditz said, trying to keep his voice as neutral as possible and not give away the fact that he was fearing for his life. He had thought he was in the clear with Vegeta, but now he wasn't so sure.

Vegeta studied Raditz, before looking away. He tucked the bean securely into his armor. He wasn't one for keeping his word, especially when what he really wanted was to feel some fresh blood on his hands. But for Trunks, he would make an exception.

Only for him.

"Fine. Lead the way then," Vegeta ordered.

Raditz exhaled in relief, and then took off into the air. Vegeta was right behind him, and was instantly annoyed at how slow Raditz was going. His own speed had increased dramatically because of his training, but he could do nothing here since he didn't know where they were going.

Finally, they landed in front of Capsule Corp. Vegeta raised an eyebrow at Raditz as his comrade turned back to face him.

"Chi-Chi's been helping Bulma, since her parents are still out of town and she's still upset about Yamcha." When Raditz saw the look of confusion on Vegeta's face that read, _who?_ , he clarified, "Kakarot's woman is here because the mother of your son is still upset about you killing her mate right in front of her."

"And you expect me to eat something those females have prepared?" Vegeta scoffed. "Anything they give me is likely poisoned."

"It should be fine. Gohan is here, and I doubt they would kill you in front of the boy."

"Hn."

Vegeta nodded his agreement. After all, he still had the last Senzu bean to heal him if he started feeling any ill effects. And if that didn't work, he would simply kill them all. He would be justified in breaking his promise to Trunks under those circumstances.

Raditz nodded back, and then went inside to get some food. Vegeta crossed his arms, staring at the domed building that was still half-destroyed. To think that he had _lived_ there in another time…

His sensitive hearing suddenly picked up yelling inside the building. Instantly, he knew it was the female he was destined to have a son with. Vegeta's eyes narrowed when he heard his name being venomously used by the blue-haired woman. He wasn't used to having his name being so disrespected in his presence outside of Frieza's forces, much less by a female, and his fists instinctively clenched at his sides. His earlier bloodlust came back with a vengeance, but this time, he craved _her_ blood, and her blood alone. It didn't matter that she was going to be Trunks' mother. In _this_ timeline, Bulma hadn't birthed Trunks, so she was nothing to him except a woman who still clearly hadn't learned her place.

It was something he could rectify today. After all, there was nothing else for him to do. He had just trained nonstop for an entire year, and Raditz and Gohan were too weak to train with. He had promised his son he wouldn't purge Earth. Frieza was still a couple of days away. He might as well get some entertainment, he finally decided, as a slow smirk spread over his face.

"Alright," Raditz said as he stepped outside. "Chi-Chi's going to start making us lunch-" he blinked when he saw that Vegeta wasn't there anymore. The Saiyan glanced around, seeing no signs of the prince. He tried sensing him, but when he couldn't, he just shrugged and turned back around to fetch his nephew for a small bout of training before lunch.

Bulma was angry as she stalked into the laboratory where she'd been working nonstop on a variety of different projects. No, she was beyond angry. She was infuriated that Raditz had the nerve to just stroll into her home, interrupt a heart-to-heart conversation with Chi-Chi, and demand that they make food to feed Vegeta. They would be lucky if she didn't douse the bastard's food with her D-NAD so he'd kick the bucket for good, she angrily mused. She sat down on a stool at a lab table in front of Ginyu's scouter, scooping it up and flipping it open.

Goku and Raditz had both tried patiently explaining to her that they needed Vegeta against Frieza, but she didn't care about Frieza. Not right now, anyways. She had heard about Frieza for over a year now from Raditz, and he was almost like an urban legend now in her mind. Right now, there was only one enemy, and- and-…

-and he was right behind her.

Bulma's entire body froze, her mind blanking as fear rippled down her spine. The scouter fell from her hands, landing with a clank on the lab table. Vegeta's gloved hand was right under her chin, lingering right over her throat. His fingers were barely touching, but the rough, ripped fabric of his glove grazed her skin in deadly warning.

"I'm curious, woman," Vegeta whispered, lowering his hand and gently wrapping it around her throat without applying any pressure. "How eager are you to run your mouth now, without Trunks here to protect you?"

"If you touch me, Trunks will kill you," Bulma calmly responded, sounding brave even though her hands were shaking. She had seen Vegeta's strength first-hand, and she knew he could kill her with ease and with no hesitation. Her eyes scanned over her lab for some kind of weapon, any kind of weapon, but the only thing in front of her was Ginyu's scouter.

"I could just disintegrate your remains and the boy would be none the wiser," Vegeta sneered, his grip suddenly tightening on her throat.

"There are cameras," she choked out.

"I'll destroy them before Trunks sees them."

"Raditz and Chi-Chi will know."

"I'll kill them both as soon as I leave this room. And if you scream, I will kill the woman slowly and brutally, right in front of her son. What do you think?"

Bulma released a shaky breath. Their tones were casual like they were discussing the weather, but there was nothing casual about Vegeta's grip continuously tightening. And there was definitely nothing casual about his dark and murderous chuckle at her silence.

"I can smell the fear on you," he playfully whispered in her ear. She jerked away from him in disgust, but it wasn't by much. He had her trapped, and there was nothing she could do about it as he continued, "It's about time you learned to be afraid of me. Not calling me weak now, are you?"

"You've proven your point, Vegeta _,_ " Bulma hatefully spat out, her voice hoarse. "But if you even _try_ to touch me, I'll make sure I rip one of your fucking eyes out before you kill me. You might have raped me in the other timeline, but you won't in this one, I promise you that."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow behind her in curiosity. "Is that what you think happened between us, female?"

"That's the only reason why an asshole like you would ever get near me-"

Bulma shrieked as he suddenly lifted her up from her stool, and then shoved her hard against the wall. Vegeta was right in front of her, roughly pinning her arms back as she struggled against him. She tried to knee him in the crotch, but he easily avoided it, forcing her legs against the wall with his own.

He couldn't help the cruel smirk that spread over his face when he sensed that her fear had become raw terror as she struggled to break free. The stupid woman _really did_ think he was about to force himself on her, but he wasn't going to. After all, he knew that he hadn't forced her to do anything in Trunks' timeline. The boy had told him a long time ago that Bulma had fallen in love with him, after all. Not to mention, Vegeta was as sure as he needed air to breathe that Trunks would not hold him in such high regard if he had raped the woman in front of him.

Still, having the brave woman practically shaking in terror due to this simple position he had her in, was absolutely delicious to him. He chuckled in amusement at her weak attempts to force him back, contemplating what route to take. He could take this further and make her think he was about to have his way with her, _or,_ he could tell her the truth. Her reaction to both would be so enjoyable, but he figured Trunks would be none too pleased with the first option. So he went with the second.

"I hate to break it to you, wench, but you gave yourself to me willingly," Vegeta smugly informed her, his face only inches from hers. Bulma stopped struggling, breathing heavily as she furiously stared back at him. The prince cocked his head to one side, intrigued by the fire of emotion that was ignited in her blue eyes. The emotion was sheer hatred, but it was briefly mesmerizing.

"You're a liar," Bulma hissed. "I would NEVER let a monster like you touch me-"

"Oh, but you did, little female. So either your morals aren't as strong as you would like to believe, or you were just eager to become my whore."

Bulma was so angry and upset, that she was at a loss for words. She would never hate anyone in her life like she hated this man. Her heartbeat suddenly picked up in fear as the unpredictable Saiyan shifted their arms, so he was pinning both of her arms with one of his. He reached up to her with his free hand, and ran his index finger over her bottom lip. He only did it for a second before Bulma jerked her head away, making him chuckle.

"Why don't we skip the bullshit, woman? You can submit to me and get on your knees, right now, and put that pretty little mouth to good use. It's what you are _destined_ to do anyways," he sneered.

Vegeta barely had enough time to close his eyes before Bulma spat in his face. His dark eyes were lethal with hatred when he opened them again.

"How's that for putting my mouth to good use, you son of a bitch? I'll die in this timeline before I ever touch _you._ "

A myriad of different ways to kill her flashed through Vegeta's mind, and the need to spill her blood, smell her blood, and feel her blood, was so intense that he was almost shaking from his restraint. Vegeta growled dangerously, desperate to break this woman, physically and mentally, piece by piece. He had only meant to terrorize her a bit, force her to learn her place and fear him, but now he so badly wanted to kill her. _No one_ spit in his face and lived.

It was only Trunks' voice in his mind that stopped him. Barely.

The next thing Bulma knew, she was roughly thrown to the floor. She quickly sat up and backed up in a panic, already scanning for something she could grab onto to wield as a weapon to defend herself. It took her a few moments to realize that Vegeta was still standing where he had been. He was wiping the spit off his face, glaring at her while he did.

Finally, he lowered his arm and snarled, "Listen good, female, because I won't repeat myself. I told the boy that I wouldn't kill anyone on this planet while he was training. I will let all your disrespect until now slide, only for that reason. But if you so much as _look_ at me the wrong way from now on, I don't care what I promised Trunks. I will rip you apart and feed you to the birds. Understand?"

Bulma blinked at him in disbelief, as though she couldn't comprehend. He wasn't going to kill her? Where was the madman who demanded that she help him locate the Dragon Balls just two days ago? She stared at him in unease, before furiously screaming at him, "Well, don't play these sadistic games with me then if you don't want any disrespect, you asshole!"

Vegeta slowly cracked his neck. His fingers were twitching from his restraint which was seconds away from snapping. "I _strongly_ suggest, for your own well-being, that you watch your mouth. You've already used up all of your luck against me. I am in the mood to kill somebody, so don't tempt me, woman."

Without another word, Vegeta turned around and stalked away, leaving Bulma on the floor, shaken, infuriated, and confused. First she thought she was going to get killed. Then raped. Then killed again, then raped again. But finally, nothing at all happened.

The heiress tightly gripped her hands together to get them to stop shaking. Vegeta was terrifying, but it seemed like that was all he wanted to do. Play cruel mind games with her. She sighed deeply in relief, and glanced over at the clock in her lab. Trunks and Goku couldn't have been in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for more than two hours. She wasn't sure she was going to survive to ever see them again.

Later that night, everyone was gratefully still alive. Vegeta was still at the compound, much to Bulma's chagrin and disgust, but she couldn't force the man to leave. So she simply avoided him out of self-preservation, hoping he wouldn't sneak up on her if he got "bored" again. But he was just as eager to avoid her as well, staying only because he was being entertained with Gohan and Raditz sparring. The prince was sitting outside in the grass behind the compound, where he had been for hours now, watching them intensely.

His attention was solely on Gohan. The boy's unique fighting style was a rudimentary, slightly altered version of Trunks' perfected fighting style, further proving that the young boy eventually trained his son in the future. But the effect of Raditz' presence in this timeline was also evident in Gohan's form and technique. Vegeta could easily see flashes of the aggressive and ruthless style of fighting that categorized all soldiers of Frieza's army, clearly passed down from uncle to nephew. It was fascinating to see.

Vegeta smirked when Gohan easily got the best of Raditz, surprising his uncle with a hard uppercut right to his chin. His smirk spread when Raditz promptly fell down, holding his aching chin. The kid was good; much stronger than he had been at the same age.

Gohan jogged up to Raditz, and extended him a hand. "Sorry, Uncle Raditz! I hit harder than I wanted to," the little boy sheepishly said.

"I'm fine," Raditz growled, batting Gohan's hand away.

"Oh, okay."

Raditz was getting back up to his feet, when Vegeta was suddenly there. The prince roughly shoved him back to the ground with a boot to his back. Raditz landed hard on his face in the grass.

"Stay down, weakling," Vegeta spat out with pure disdain. "Can't even beat a child in a spar. If I hadn't promised my son there would be no bloodshed in his absence, I would kill you right now. You're a disgrace."

Raditz turned around, slowly sitting up, his face red with shame and embarrassment. Vegeta slowly turned his intense glare to Gohan, who took a wary step back. He maintained eye contact with the prince, but it was with much effort. The man was even more frightening than he remembered.

"You and I will spar now, boy," Vegeta announced. Gohan blinked rapidly a few times, before looking over at his uncle, who gave him a short nod. The little boy quickly took another step back when Vegeta took a step towards him. The prince could sense his fear, and he chuckled in amusement. Having people being afraid of him would never get old. "I'm not going to kill you. I just want to see what you've got."

Gohan pushed his fear aside, telling himself that his dad hadn't been afraid of Vegeta. So he wouldn't be either. He took a deep breath, and was about to sink into his fighting stance, when something flashed across the sky that immediately got his attention. He blinked at the sight.

"What is that?" he wondered aloud, making Vegeta and Raditz both follow his line of sight in curiosity. "Are those comets? Holy cow, there are a BUNCH of-"

"Oh, shit," Vegeta hissed, visibly paling at the sight in the sky.

Those weren't comets. Those were space pods. Those were _hundreds_ of space pods, barreling through Earth's atmosphere. It was an invasion, and it had Frieza's name written all over it.

"What do we do?" Raditz asked anxiously, looking directly at Vegeta.

The prince was grinding his teeth together, glancing up towards the direction of the Lookout. Trunks and Goku were still hours away from being done. His eyes shifted back to the space pods streaking across the sky, sensing the ki of the warriors inside. He was stronger than all of them, he quickly realized. He could easily take them out-

And then, he and Raditz both felt it at the same time. The most powerful ki signature either had ever felt. They both stared off towards the north at the same time with wide eyes, left breathless at the overwhelming power that seemed to have no limit.

"What the hell is that?" Raditz roughly asked, feeling like there was sand in his throat.

"Frieza," Vegeta whispered. No one else could be so powerful. "It must be him."

"Impossible, he's…"

 _Stronger than Trunks,_ Vegeta silently finished, feeling cold sweat running down his lower back under his armor. His fists were clenched tight, but they were shaking. _But how? How could he have gained so much strength!_

"Uncle Raditz?" Gohan asked worriedly, looking back and forth between the two adult Saiyans. They both looked like they were staring death right in the face.

Then, the explosions started from the landings of all the space pods. All three of them were knocked off their feet, back down to the grass.

"What the HELL?" Bulma shrieked from inside the compound, thinking the Saiyans training together was the reason why her house had started shaking. Just when she had a cup of hot coffee, too. She furiously marched outside to yell at them to go fight somewhere else, when she saw what looked like raining, fiery comets barreling through the sky towards Earth. Another violent round of explosions rocked the ground, sending her to the grass too.

"You lying, incompetent BITCH!" Vegeta screamed at her as he got back up to his feet. "You said Frieza was still days away and now he's HERE!"

"That's impossible, I hacked the encryption code, you jackass!" Bulma screamed back at him. "I didn't make any mistake! The scouter linked to Ginyu's is STILL days away from here!"

"He abandoned the scouter then," Vegeta muttered under his breath, shaking his head in dismay. "The bastard has worn the same damn scouter my whole life…and he abandoned it _now_ , of all times…"

They all looked back as wave after wave of space pods kept flying through the sky. Hundreds had become thousands. The ground was still shaking, and they could all hear sirens and see smoke rising everywhere in the distance. The sun had set, and darkness was washing over the sky, signaling death's arrival in more ways than one.

"Vegeta, what are we going to do?" Raditz yelled at him, getting the prince's attention.

Vegeta's mind was racing, but he was out of options. This was it. The moment they had all been preparing for. It had all come down to tonight, but they were being blindsided. Trunks was supposed to face Frieza, that was the plan. But Trunks wasn't there, and Vegeta still didn't measure up. The planet would be burned to the ground soon with the forces Frieza had brought with him.

There was only one thing to do.

"Fight back. I still have one Senzu bean left, so we have a chance."

"But, there are THOUSANDS of them, and what about Frieza-"

"How long do you think it will take them to find us, Raditz?" Vegeta demanded. His comrade fell silent, knowing the truth. Even if they did nothing, with numbers like that, they would be found soon. They were strong enough to fight back, but it wouldn't be long before Frieza came lurking. Might as well take the fight to them.

"What do we do then?" Raditz asked again, finally standing again as Gohan clung to his leg.

"We'll attack head on," Vegeta growled, watching the space pods continue to fall as he clenched his hands into tight fists. "They're still coming. You, boy, you attack before they even land and take out as many space pods as you can. Raditz, you kill the ones that have already landed. I will handle Frieza alone. All three of us will work together-"

"No, you can't take Gohan with you!" Bulma yelled out, gripping onto the edge of the doorframe leading into her kitchen to remain standing as the ground continued to shake. "If you two want to go on a damn suicide mission, then by all means, go get yourselves killed, but you're NOT taking Gohan-"

Her words were cut off with a yelp as Vegeta suddenly came in and roughly grabbed her by the back of the neck. He threw her back into the compound, sending her flying in and crashing to the floor.

"Shut the fuck up and stay here!" Vegeta screamed at her. "YOU have the radar for the Dragon Balls and it's voice activated for you, so YOU need to stay alive! And if by chance we fail and you get caught, DON'T tell Frieza about the Dragon Balls!"

"What-?" Bulma started, blinking in shock, but Vegeta was already back with Raditz and Gohan, barking orders and making sure they were clear on their roles.

Gohan whimpered a little, terrified of the thought of going up against thousands of hardened space warriors. And he didn't miss the apprehension that tightened on his uncle's features when Frieza was mentioned. He, too, could sense the tyrant's power. He thought he knew how strong an adversary he would be. But he had been so, so wrong. The tyrant was far away from them, but he could still feel the force of his dark power bearing down on him.

When Vegeta and Raditz both turned around to take off into the air, Gohan remained frozen where he was. It was a mistake that immediately earned him Vegeta's attention, and not in a good way. Before he knew it, the prince had already grabbed him by the front of his dark blue martial arts gi, hauling him up until they were eye level.

"Now is not the time for fear, boy!" Vegeta snarled in his face, giving him a rough shake. "You're strong enough and skilled enough, so you need to be a man now and fight, or we're all dead! You got it?" Gohan meekly nodded, before he was dropped on the ground. "Now let's go, and keep your power down, both of you," Vegeta ordered harshly.

With that, the prince blasted into the dark night sky, with Raditz right behind him. Gohan hesitated only a second, before he quickly scrambled up to his feet, and took off after them, ignoring Bulma screaming for him to come back. Vegeta was right. He had to fight to help save his planet. They were the only three who could do it. This was what he had trained for with Raditz, Goku, and Piccolo.

Still, he couldn't help but look down in horror when he saw the ongoing purge going on beneath him. Whereas the Ginyu Force had preferred amusing themselves and taking their time, only purging East City and most of West City, the forces Frieza had now were destroying everyone in sight, ruthlessly working through the whole planet. There were wild explosions as military forces desperately tried fighting back, only to be overpowered with ki blasts. They weren't as strong as the Ginyu Force, but they were still far too much for the humans to face.

Vegeta looked back over his shoulder at Raditz and Gohan, and threw up two fingers in a silent order. He and Raditz immediately diverged in their flight trajectory, with Vegeta heading north towards Frieza, and Raditz heading south, where he could sense the greatest damage being done in the purge. Gohan froze in midair, blinking at their sudden change of directions as he looked back and forth between them.

That was all the hesitation that was needed for one of the warriors down below to notice him alone in midair.

Gohan had only just noticed the purple ki blast spiraling up towards him when Raditz suddenly phased in right in front of him. Raditz deflected the blast away with one swipe of his arm, raised his other hand up, and fired back a bright blue blast of his own. There was a huge explosion and a rise of smoke, and Raditz immediately took advantage of the distraction. He grabbed his nephew and took off flying again towards the south, hauling Gohan with him in midair.

"Listen!" Raditz yelled, looking up at space pods that were still coming down. A little further, and his nephew would have a better angle. "You have to take the space pods down, Gohan! We can't let them get more numbers on us than they already have!"

Gohan didn't have time to respond before Raditz shoved him forward. The little boy was trembling, losing his resolve as he saw the space pods still barreling down through the sky. Raditz was immediately behind him, raising one hand up over his nephew's shoulder. Yellow light sparked up around his hand as he rapidly gathered up energy, and then he fired. His blast flew and hit a space pod dead-on, and it exploded on contact.

"Like that," Raditz growled. He roughly grabbed his nephew's small hand and forced it up, before screaming right in his ear, "Now FIRE!"

His nephew did, firing a lethal blast that was as powerful as the one Raditz fired, without even thinking about it. And then he fired again. And again. It was getting easier and easier. His uncle hovered only for a few seconds, before taking off again, going to take care of the warriors on the ground as he left Gohan alone.

Gohan was shaking as he raised both hands up, before his features set in hard determination. This was HIS planet – and he was going to protect it. The boy's blue aura glowed around him, and his hands steadied as he proceeded to fire with an accuracy that far exceeded his age. Space pods exploded, crashing down to the Earth in piles of burning metal, dismantled at the hands of a six-year-old boy.

No other space pod landed on Earth after that.

Meanwhile, Vegeta was on the ground, running with speed and stealth as he made sure to keep his power down. He was unfazed by the screams of humans being dismantled, beaten, broken, and burned alive from ki blasts. He didn't mind the smell of blood and death in the air, or the smoke and fire that consumed the town he was running through. If anything, it made him feel right at home. Death and destruction was what he grew up with, and it put him in the right mindset for the battle he was about to fight. He knew that his power was floating on the brink of the legendary ascension; he only hoped he could finally tap into it.

An alien warrior came into view, and the prince immediately ducked out of sight behind a car that was on fire. His heart was pounding in his chest; he could sense Frieza less than half a mile away, but he didn't want to give his presence away. Not yet. Sweat ran into his eyes, making Vegeta angrily brush it away, but his body was subconsciously reacting to the enormous power level he was sensing. There was no denying it now – it was higher than Trunks' power. Even if he _could_ ascend, he wondered if it would even save him.

Vegeta slowly looked around the car to get a close view on who was purging the planet. He scowled when he saw that the alien warrior in front of him wasn't wearing the armor of Frieza's forces, and he had no scouter. He was a blue, scaly lizard with four long, thin arms, with talons on the ends. He wasn't a species that Vegeta recognized.

The warrior turned to fire another ki blast, when Vegeta swept in from behind, and violently wrenched his head off. The prince was already out of sight again before the body even fell to the ground, continuing to advance towards his enemy while silently but ruthlessly taking care of any other warrior aliens along his way.

Finally, Vegeta saw a clearing. Buildings had been leveled, and all shreds of life were gone. Standing in the dead middle, with his back to the prince, was the source of the power they had all felt miles and miles away. The alien's sleek tail waved slowly, back and forth, as though patiently beckoning him. Vegeta ducked behind the corner of a building to remain out of sight, but he peeked back out with wide eyes as his blood ran cold at the sight of him. Even from this distance, he saw the truth.

That wasn't Frieza. That was Cooler.

 _But how?_ his mind raged. He hadn't been fully conscious at the time, but he had still been well aware that Cooler had tried using him as leverage against Trunks at the Trials. It was one of his last coherent thoughts of that night – Trunks had killed Cooler and King Cold. The boy had confirmed it later on.

Vegeta mentally cursed his son straight to hell. Trunks hadn't finished Cooler off after all, since the bastard was standing right in front of him. He should have known the boy was too soft to finish the fucking job.

"I know you're out there," Cooler's voice boomed as his metallic tail whizzed in amusement. Cooler looked to the side, and Vegeta ducked out of sight again, cursing under his breath. "I can smell you, monkey. That stench is unmistakable."

Without further warning, the building Vegeta was behind exploded, sending him flying backwards and crashing into a pile of rubble, dust and debris falling on top of him. The prince angrily shoved it all off him, getting back up to his feet.

" _There_ you are," Cooler said with a smirk, now only about ten feet in front of the prince. "No wonder my brother was always so interested in you. You certainly are resilient, Vegeta."

"Hn. I could say the same about you. Last I heard, you were sliced to death," Vegeta sneered, his fists clenched so tight that his forearms hurt.

"If my family was so easily defeated, we wouldn't rule the entire universe, now would we?"

"Oh? Is that why your father was killed like he was nothing?"

"Well, at least he put up a fight, which isn't what I heard about _your_ weak father."

Vegeta grit his teeth together, before barking out, "Where's Frieza?"

"Your concern is with me at the moment." Cooler's expression darkened with hatred as he raised up one sleek finger, "One chance, Saiyan. Tell me where the boy is who killed my father. You're going to die anyways, but I will give you a quick death if you answer my question with the truth. Otherwise, I will let my brother finish you off. He might just turn you in personally to the Liyan army, and let them do with you as they please."

Vegeta blinked a few times. "The Liyan army? That's who you brought?"

"Yes. Frieza informed me that you were going to purge my planet Liyana of your own accord prior to your capture. Instead of waiting for their demise, I offered the Liyans the chance to strike first against the cruel Prince Vegeta. Kill or be killed, as they say. I'm sure you of all people understand," Cooler chuckled. "They are doing such a fine job of purging this planet, don't you think?"

"Cooler…" Vegeta growled, taking a step forward. "Frieza is the one that ordered me to purge Liyana and Rithica, and now he's just using your attachment to your father against you, you fool! If you continue to help him, you'll die!" he yelled.

Cooler smiled sadistically. The prince thought he was sharing news with him, but he was no fool. He already knew that his brother had no intentions of letting him leave this planet alive. He was going to let Frieza kill the half-breed Saiyan boy, and right when it happened, he was going to swoop in and destroy his younger brother once and for all. They were both playing each other, and it would come down to who attacked first. And Cooler was going to make damn sure that was him.

But first things were first. The Saiyan boy had to die. And as long as there was still air in the half-breed's lungs, Frieza and Cooler were going to work together. They were willing to burn the entire universe to ashes if necessary to ensure Trunks' death. It was the only thing that mattered.

"My business with my brother is none of your concern, Vegeta. All you need to do is tell me where the boy is," Cooler sneered, raising one finger again. "One last chance. Where is he?"

Vegeta glared, his heartbeat ringing in his ears. Seconds passed filled with silence between them, with the sounds of explosions and screaming in the distance. Finally, Vegeta's eyes shifted over, and he lied, "He's right behind you."

It all happened in under a second. Cooler immediately spun around, already braced for battle against the lavender-haired Saiyan hybrid. Lightning fast, the prince raised his hand to fire the first shot in the fight against Cooler, who had foolishly turned his back on him.

Vegeta had barely lifted his hand, though, when his body was violently jolted. The familiar taste of his own blood rushed up his throat, filling his mouth until the blood was trickling down his chin. The prince was shaking as he slowly looked down. There was a clenched white fist that he immediately recognized, drenched in crimson, sticking out of the padding of his armor that covered his stomach.

"My poor, precious monkey, you should have known that I would also learn how to hide my power," Frieza chuckled right behind Vegeta's ear. "Such a shame we had to meet again like this. But just know that you were always like a son to me, Vegeta. I cared _so_ much about you. But I have a new, half-breed pet I must tame. It's been fun, sweet prince."

Frieza then withdrew his bloodied arm. Vegeta's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the dirt.


	20. The Breaking Point

"KAAAAAH…MEEHHHH…"

Red fire surrounded Goku, who was glowing like a star about to explode. He was down on one knee, his hands shaking as his eyes locked on Trunks, who was in midair above him. The young Saiyan hybrid had his hands back, gathering up energy of his own in a showdown to push Goku to ascend. Raw, electric blue ki snapped up between Trunks' hands, and his golden aura flared up as he powered up.

 _Something's wrong,_ Trunks suddenly thought, blinking rapidly at the feeling that had suddenly settled in his stomach. He grit his teeth together, pushing the feeling aside as he gathered up more energy.

"HAAAAAH…MEEHHHH…"

Trunks had to resist the urge to shake his head in admiration. They had only been training for six months, but Goku was already on the cusp of the legendary ascension. He was a natural, and his progression was moving much faster than Vegeta's had. Trunks was sure that he could ascend, right here, right now. This wasn't the time for distractions-

But then the feeling in his stomach intensified. He had only felt this once before in his life: when he woke up after Gohan knocked him out in his timeline. A feeling of absolute hopelessness and dread. His eyes glazed over briefly as he wondered what was wrong. Surely, Vegeta hadn't gone back on his word…had he?

"HAAAAAAAH!"

Goku fired a powerful blast of blue ki, immediately getting Trunks' attention again. Trunks was about to fire his own counterattack to push Goku's limits even further, when the feeling of dread in his stomach worsened, spreading up his spine. No. Something was _definitely_ wrong.

His eye twitched as he watched the beam of energy spiral up right towards him, his own ki burning in between the palms of his hands, waiting to be unleashed. Everything was rumbling around them in response to Goku's extraordinary power, a thundering that was waiting for Trunks to fire back so it would be finally complete.

But the very, _very_ last second, Trunks dodged the attack, extinguishing his ki at the same time. He watched the powerful energy spiral away into the white abyss, feeling the waves of raw heat rush past him.

"Trunks?" Goku gasped as he panted for air.

It was only then that they both heard the banging, confirming Trunks' sinking intuition. Goku could only blink as Trunks' golden aura flared up around him, before he flew back towards the small living quarters without a word. Goku immediately shot off after him, having to fly as fast as possible to not be left behind. Trunks descended, running in a dead sprint while he drew out his sword. He lowered his shoulder and charged through the door leading out of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with so much force, he almost killed Mr. Popo who had been banging on that same door.

"Trunks! What's wrong?" Goku asked, running after Trunks a couple of seconds later. He was completely out of breath, still winded from their spar.

But Trunks had already run to the edge of the Lookout, peering over as his heart pounded hard in his chest. His stomach dropped as his grip on his sword handle tightened. He could practically smell the death all the way from where he was. A purge. Had to be. His first, furious thought was that Vegeta had done this. But when he stretched out his senses to feel for his father to put an end to the bloodshed, his fury gave way to confusion, and then concern. He couldn't feel Vegeta's ki signature at all.

"What the hell is going on here?" Trunks asked out loud, his eyes widening in shock as he felt thousands of high ki signatures that he didn't recognize.

"I was trying to get your attention, Trunks," Mr. Popo said from behind him as Goku held him up. "The Earth is being invaded! They need your help-"

"What!" Goku cried out, blinking in astonishment. "But, Frieza wasn't supposed to-"

"It's not Frieza, it's probably the rest of his army that he sent to purge the planet!" Trunks shouted. "There's no time, Goku! You start working on taking those guys out, I have to find my father!"

"Trunks, wait!" Goku yelled out for him, but Trunks had already taken off.

Trunks was flying at supersonic speed through the night sky towards West City, looking down at the destruction he was flying over. There was so much death beneath him, it made him feel sick. Corpses. _So many corpses,_ human and alien alike. Buildings were on fire, and there were still faint explosions going off in the distance.

Trunks extended his senses again, and easily pinpointed Raditz and Gohan. They were fighting, he could feel it. He was close enough to Capsule Corp to reach out for Bulma, something he was well-versed in from always trying to protect her in his timeline. It took a few seconds to pinpoint her weak ki which was rapidly on the move, but she seemed fine from what he could feel. It was only his father who he couldn't sense. Hoping the prince was hiding his ki, Trunks tried reaching out for him telepathically. But he was getting nothing back.

 _But how could he be beaten? None of these guys are stronger than him!_ Trunks thought in bewilderment. Finally, he changed tactics, and reached out to Raditz.

_Raditz!_

It took a few seconds, before he heard back, _Trunks? You're already out?_

 _Where's my father?_ Trunks demanded as he looked down at West City. His home, destroyed. The exact thing he'd traveled back to prevent. His blue eyes darkened when he saw a group of aliens firing ki blasts at will, setting humans on fire. Screams of agony rose up to him, and Trunks immediately responded by firing a blast of his own as he flew over them. He killed the group instantly, as concrete and metal exploded from his attack. Trunks kept flying, maintaining his speed the entire time.

 _He was heading north. There was a huge power level that we sensed up there. It must have been Frieza, but –_ there was a stream of furious mental cursing from Raditz, as he dodged a wild attack from an alien he was fighting on the street. Raditz was quickly backed up on his heels, before he shot up into the air as a car was hurled right where he had been a second ago. The car crashed into a store with so much force, it leveled it on impact in a massive explosion.

_Raditz! Does he still have the Senzu bean or have you guys used it yet?_

_He should still have it –_ Raditz sent back, lifting his arms up over his head as he gathered up desperate red ki in his hands. Raditz grit his teeth, trying to keep his eyes on his enemy, while keeping tabs on Gohan who was engaged in a heated battle of his own, while trying to keep up with Trunks mentally. He was about to fire when another warrior alien shot a powerful blast right at him from behind. The Saiyan sensed it and did a backflip out of the way, and while upside down, he fired his attack on that alien instead, sending the blue lizard shrieking and flying back into the distance.

 _Sorry kid – I'm kinda busy right now!_ Raditz finally sent back. _You have to go find Vegeta! I don't know where Frieza is – the power dropped and I can't sense him anymore – SHIT!_ Raditz mentally cursed, caught by surprise by a hard elbow to the back of his neck that sent him right into a ki attack from another warrior. He barely brought up both of his arms to defend himself as the numbers game started to catch up to him.

 _Just hang on! Goku's coming to help!_ Trunks sent back, heading north as he desperately searched for his father on the ground, shooting powerful blasts at every alien that he saw along the way. Trunks very quickly racked up a high body count, leaving no alien alive as he killed without mercy and without hesitation. Not even thinking about his actions, Trunks' brow furrowed as he thought about the high power level that Raditz had felt.

Frieza, there, _already_? And if that was the case, then where was he now? He couldn't sense any huge power level. Had Vegeta defeated him? It wasn't too far-fetched, Trunks optimistically concluded, especially if his father made his Super Saiyan transformation. Maybe Vegeta had defeated Frieza, and then passed out from exhaustion-

His thoughts, optimism, and flight all came to an abrupt stop in the night sky. Trunks' mouth ran dry as he looked down at a massive, barren, circular clearing almost a mile wide in radius, right in the middle of North City. It looked almost like a prepared battlefield, but what caught his attention was Vegeta, who was right in the dead middle of it, with a trail of blood leading from the edge of the clearing like he had crawled – or been dragged – to the middle. Regardless, even from where he was in the sky, Trunks knew it was bad. He descended down immediately, dropping roughly on his knees next to his father.

_There's my new half-breed pet. Right on time._

_Should we attack now? The fool is so concerned about Vegeta, that he hasn't noticed us._

_Patience, dear brother, patience! The half-breed monkey mutt won't notice us so long as we continue to hide our power. Besides, I'm curious to see what the relationship between these two is. Don't ruin my entertainment…_

"Oh no," Trunks whispered bleakly, looking his father over. The prince was sprawled out on his back, his face a bloodied mess, but it was the ugly wound in his stomach that made Trunks' hands start to shake. At best, he was unconscious. But at worst…

"No, no, no, not again, not again," Trunks hissed under his breath, images of Gohan's dead body flashing through his mind as sweat ran down the back of his neck. He couldn't sense Vegeta's ki at all. He instantly checked his father's pulse with one hand, putting his other hand on Vegeta's chest to feel for any rise at all. He held both hands still for a few seconds that felt like a few decades. Vegeta wasn't breathing. But there _was_ a faint, slow heartbeat. It was good enough.

Trunks didn't waste any time. He shifted over, grabbed Vegeta's armor, and lifted it as much as he could to slide his hand underneath. He closed his eyes tightly when he felt the ice cold skin of his father's chest, trying hard to ignore it as he searched for the bean. After a few seconds, Trunks' patience snapped, and he desperately tugged the armor off Vegeta in one haul. The bean came flying out with the hard jerk, rolling onto the dirt.

He immediately retrieved it, forced his father's mouth open, and practically shoved the Senzu bean inside. Trunks grabbed Vegeta and lifted him so he was sitting up, forcing the bean to go down. He sat down behind his father to support him, tried hard to ignore how cold and lifeless Vegeta felt against him, and waited.

And waited.

Trunks buried his face against Vegeta's shoulder, his eyes squeezed shut with hot tears that he was struggling to rein in.

He waited some more.

Finally, after some long and agonizing seconds to Trunks, Vegeta snorted roughly. He then broke into a fit of harsh coughs, hacking up blood. Trunks felt like the ability to breathe had been restored to both of them. He sighed in relief, while patting Vegeta on the back as the prince struggled to get his breath back. He had barely made contact though, when Vegeta threw his elbow back, almost nailing Trunks in the face. Trunks barely managed to block it, before Vegeta started to power up in what was a delirious effort to fight back against who he assumed was Frieza, still torturing him.

"Father, stop it! It's me!" Trunks yelled, instantly ending Vegeta's struggles.

_Did he just call Vegeta FATHER?_

_Yes, but it makes no sense. By all accounts from my men, Vegeta went through quite a bit of effort to avoid having any offspring…how could he possibly have a son, and how could I not know about it?..._

_I told you, brother. I told you to kill the monkey prince when he was a child, didn't I? Now he's fathered a Super Saiyan. This could have all been avoided if it wasn't for your arrogance!_

_Calm yourself, Cooler. They will both die anyways._

_Are you blind as well? Did you not see him just heal Vegeta?_

_Yes, but it's useful to know they have such a thing to restore health, instead of being surprised later on. It makes no difference, in any case. They're both still outclassed. Besides, look at how attached the half-breed is to my favorite prince! It's quite touching, isn't it? …_

It took about fifteen long seconds for Vegeta's wound to fully heal, while he hacked the blood out of his airway so he could breathe. Trunks stood up, grabbing Vegeta around his midsection and lifting him up to his feet. The prince doubled over with his hands on his knees, coughing up the last remnants of blood while Trunks patted him on the back.

"You need to stop scaring me like that." The young hybrid smiled a little in relief, but it was brief. He was relieved that his father was back on his feet, but the planet was still being purged.

Vegeta finally straightened, wiping the blood off his face with his forearm. He looked down at himself, putting a hand over his stomach which was now healed. He clenched his fists tightly as he straightened, feeling new strength rushing through him. He grit his teeth; it still wasn't enough.

"Father, we have to-"

Trunks' words were instantly cut off when Vegeta backhanded him hard in the face with a closed fist. Trunks fell down, caught completely off guard. He looked up at his father in blank surprise, one hand cradling the side of his jaw.

"You gave me the bean?" Vegeta furiously yelled down at him. "You should have saved it for yourself, you fucking idiot!"

"Wha- but, you were dying!"

"YOU COULD HAVE JUST WISHED ME BACK! That was the last bean we had! You're still the best chance we have, and you just ruined everything by giving me the last goddamned bean instead of keeping it for yourself!"

Trunks' eyes flashed with anger as he got back up to his feet. "Well, maybe if you wouldn't have tried to face off against Frieza without me, then you wouldn't have gotten hurt and I wouldn't have needed to use the Senzu bean! Why didn't you just try to come get me?"

Vegeta's face flushed red with anger and embarrassment; in the heat of the moment, faced with daunting odds, the obvious had slipped right past him. At the very least, he should have tried it. A rare mishap, but not as bad as the one weighing on his mind. His gaze darkened considerably as he snarled, "You want to go _that_ route with me, boy? Fine then. Why didn't YOU take care of Cooler like you said you did? Were you just lying to me this whole time? Did you just let him live because you were too weak to finish him off?"

"What?" Trunks asked, his face scrunching in confusion. "Who are you talking about? The guy at the Trials? I killed everyone there-"

"Bullshit you did," Vegeta sneered. "Cooler's alive and he's here with Frieza!"

Trunks growled, "That's impossible, I killed him-"

"And what, you think I punched a hole through my own stomach? Frieza snuck up on me only because I was distracted by Cooler! You didn't FINISH him, you imbecile! How many times have I told you that you need to make sure that you finish your enemy off-!"

"Hey, there you two are!"

They both looked over to see Goku flying towards them. Vegeta gave Trunks one last glare of disgust, before going over to retrieve his battered armor. Trunks exhaled slowly, staring at his father in exasperation, before looking back at Goku as he descended right next to them.

_Who the hell is that?_

_I don't know, but he interrupted a very entertaining argument._

_Can you see his face from where you are?_

_No. Why?_

_He looks like the Saiyan that led the last rebellion before you destroyed the planet. Looks just like him!_

_Bardock? It can't be him. I watched him burn to death myself –_

_Brother, this resemblance is unmistakable. He must be a Saiyan._

_Well, then it's fortunate that he's here, isn't it? It's quite convenient. We can kill all the monkeys at once…_

"Goku, what are you doing here?" Trunks demanded as Goku came up to them.

"I helped Raditz and Gohan out. I took out enough of those aliens to give them a much better chance. Raditz said they were good with the rest of them, so he sent me here to make sure everything was alright." He looked over at Vegeta, and raised an eyebrow at his bloodied, bare back before the prince tugged down his armor over his head. Goku looked down, and blinked at the sight of all the blood in the dirt. "Huh. Looks like things were rough, but I guess everything's okay now, Trunks?"

"Not really," Trunks mumbled, frowning at his father before scanning over where they were. He stretched out his senses, but couldn't feel anyone stronger than the two Saiyans he was standing with. "Frieza and Cooler are both on this planet, but I can't sense either of them. Can you?"

"No," Goku answered, scratching the back of his head a little. "Who's Cooler?"

"Frieza's older brother. I thought I killed him a long time ago, but somehow, he lived…"

"They're close by," Vegeta announced, finally noticing the trail of his blood in the dirt as his muscles tensed. He'd been dragged towards the center of the clearing after passing out from his pain. Where they'd be in clear view. He angrily cursed under his breath before glancing around, "Yes, they must be close. Be ready. They're probably watching us right now-"

"I thought you said they didn't know how to hide their power," Trunks irritably snapped, still angry over being struck down.

Vegeta cast him a hateful, sidelong glance as he sneered, "They _didn't_ , but when you _clearly_ showed off that you were hiding your power at the Trials, you showed them that it was possible, you idiot half-breed-"

"Alright, guys, let's cool it," Goku interrupted, even though he was intensely looking around. Past the clearing were buildings that were either burning or destroyed. Rubble, smoke, corpses, blood. Goku shook his head in disbelief, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. He had never witnessed such destruction, and it hurt to see. "Now's not the time. We have to work together."

Trunks slowly withdrew his sword from his holster. "I don't think they're close. They would have attacked by now. Listen, why don't you two go help Raditz and Gohan clean up the rest of the aliens so they don't cause more damage? I'll find Cooler and Frieza on my own-"

Vegeta shook his head, "They're too strong, boy. You're going to need help-"

"I can beat them both on my own," Trunks cut in, with so much confidence in his voice that it teetered on the brink of arrogance. "You two aren't the only ones who got stronger in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber-"

"You got stronger, did you? How wonderful. I'll have a challenge after all."

Goku, Vegeta, and Trunks immediately spun around, only to see Frieza standing in front of them, about fifteen yards away. The tyrant offered them a smile, his arms crossed over his chest as his tail waved lazily behind him. Vegeta and Trunks both blinked at the sight of him, neither having seen him in such a form before. His armor was gone, and he was sleek and mostly white, with hints of purple. A compact killing machine. Frieza was almost unrecognizable, if it wasn't for the darkness in his eyes that was uniquely his own. And of course, his shrill voice that was unmistakable.

Vegeta noticeably swallowed. Even though his horrible injury was healed, the skin across his stomach unconsciously tightened, as though fearing that it would be violently ripped open again in seconds.

"Mmm, always wonderful to leave an audience speechless," Frieza said with a dark chuckle. He slowly extended his arms out to his sides, making all three of his adversaries get into their fighting stances. Frieza smirked at their reaction, closing his eyes as he smugly remarked, "But, I don't blame you monkeys. I _am_ the most powerful being in the universe, after all."

"I'll take care of him," Trunks whispered to the Saiyans standing behind him, tightening his grip on his sword. "You two get out of here-"

"No one's going anywhere," a smooth voice interrupted. Without turning their backs to Frieza, everyone with Saiyan blood looked over their shoulders, only to see Cooler standing behind them, about fifteen yards back. Cooler was matching his brother's smirk as Trunks' eyes took in the lower, metallic half of his body. Trunks was grinding his teeth together, mentally kicking himself. He had no idea Cooler could survive his attack.

Cooler saw Trunks' expression, and his smirk spread. "Vegeta was right, boy. Always make sure you finish off your opponent, and leave no doubt. Unfortunately, your mistake has cost you your life, and the lives of everyone on this pathetic planet."

"What's the matter, Frieza?" Trunks hissed, looking back towards the younger tyrant. "Had to bring your brother because you couldn't beat me on your own?"

Frieza chuckled again, shaking his head in amusement. "My goodness. Such arrogance. You truly are Vegeta's son. Yes, it's obvious now. The resemblance is unmistakable!" He laughed out loud in delight. "Trunks, is it? Well, Trunks. I must say, you would make a much better addition to my growing army than your father. If you drop to your knees, boy, and swear your allegiance to me, perhaps I'll just kill the two monkeys behind you, and you can come work for me. It would be so poetic. You know what they say - like father, like son-"

Vegeta growled low in his throat, practically shaking with rage at the thought of the cycle between him and his father, repeating with him and his own son. He would die before _ever_ letting it happen. Without even thinking, he charged ahead, stopped only when Trunks quickly grabbed him around his midsection to hold him back. That didn't stop the prince from furiously yelling, "No one with Saiyan blood will EVER kneel before you again, you hear me, Frieza?"

"Hmm, how rude. Is that _any_ way to talk to me after I was kind enough not to rip your heart out just moments ago?" Frieza asked with feigned hurt.

"Take it easy," Trunks whispered to his father, whose ki was snapping with his flaring emotions.

"Why are you two doing this?" Goku demanded, his eyes locked on Cooler. "If you wanted to challenge Trunks, you could've done it without killing all those innocent people-!"

"Saiyan, you should be grateful that we only brought the weakest soldiers in the Liyan army," Cooler chuckled. "Besides. My brother insists on always having extra entertainment. So don't look at me. If it was up to me, we would have destroyed your planet by now."

"And where's the fun in that?" Frieza chuckled.

Goku was left at a loss for words. Raditz had told him about Frieza, but it was only now, being in his dark presence, that he finally understood. Their maliciousness was almost tangible and suffocating in the night air. How Vegeta and Raditz had lived decades with the tyrant was beyond him, but what he really couldn't wrap his mind around was how two aliens could have such little regard for life. If the purging of Earth was anything like the purges Frieza had ordered hundreds of times, then he was facing evil itself for the first time in his life.

He clenched his fists painfully tight, feeling raw anger rising up from deep in his chest. He was struggling to keep himself in check, but they all felt a flicker of his real power. Vegeta's head instantly snapped to Goku while he blinked in astonishment. He couldn't help but wonder how it was possible that Goku had gotten so strong, in only half a year. Goku was almost as strong as he was now.

"Look at that. You've upset the weakling," Cooler snorted. He cocked his head to one side, before asking Goku, "Perhaps you'd like to do something about my brother's remarks?"

"Calm down, Goku," Trunks whispered. "They're just trying to bait you into attacking first."

"Alright…" Goku grumbled, barely able to rein himself in. " _Man_! I just can't get a sense of how strong these guys really are!"

"Cooler is extremely powerful," Vegeta quietly told them. "And Frieza is worse, but I don't know by how much…"

Trunks hesitated only a second, before he finally stepped forward in Frieza's direction. He extended his arm out, pointing at the tyrant with his sword, before he snarled, "Your brother stays out of this, and my father and Goku stay out of this. This fight is between us, Frieza. Me and you, one on one, no interference, no excuses. Or are you that much of a coward that you can't face me on your own?"

Frieza's smirk disappeared at the blatant challenge. His eyes darkened, before they shifted past all of them towards his brother. A few tense seconds of silence passed as both tyrants had a silent, mental exchange. Goku and Vegeta shot each other wary glances. This was it. The Cold family would be destroyed tonight, and the universe would finally be freed from their intergalactic tyranny. Or they were all going to die, and Earth would be nothing but space dust before the night was done.

"Very well, boy. I will face you alone," Frieza calmly said. He chuckled, slowly raising one finger which he waved in warning. "But, if Vegeta and that Bardock clone try to get involved, all bets are off."

 _Trunks,_ Vegeta's voice rang through his son's mind. Trunks eyed him out of the corner of his eye. _They might not keep their word if Frieza starts losing. You have to end this, fast. You can't show him any mercy, because he won't show you any if he has the chance._

Trunks gave a subtle nod, before his blue eyes shifted to his enemy. He was ending this, tonight, or he would die trying.

"I don't need anyone's help, unlike you," Trunks sneered.

"Well then. What are you waiting for, boy? Go on. Stop hiding your power. Show me just what the _Saiyan race_ has to offer," Frieza sneered back.

Almost casually, Trunks removed the holster for his sword, and then shrugged out of his leather jacket, leaving him in a black Capsule Corp muscle tank Bulma had given him. Trunks then flashed a smirk. "As you wish."

His ki suddenly and violently exploded around him in a blinding gold light, forcing Vegeta and Goku to stagger backwards away from him and fall down. They both had to raise their arms to protect their eyes as dust rose up around Trunks in a powerful vortex, before he shot up into the air.

Dark clouds gathered overhead as the air rushed around Trunks, who let out an unearthly scream as his true potential ripped through him, golden electricity surrounding him in a cloak of fierce energy. His muscle mass easily doubled, nearly tearing his tank into pieces as his body accommodated the enormous strength exploding through him. His shoulder-length, golden hair stood on end as his entire body shook with tides of power he had never tapped into before.

The Saiyans down below could only stare, slack-jawed and wide-eyed, neither having seen his power surge to such extraordinary levels before. The Cold brothers were both watching Trunks, their expressions calm, collected, and well-guarded. Frieza watched Trunks power up for a few more seconds, before a malicious smirk spread on his face as he slowly extended his arms again.

He had seen enough. It was time to unleash his own power.

Goku and Vegeta immediately looked back at Frieza as his power suddenly rose in a breakneck pace that easily matched Trunks'. The ground was shaking like there was an earthquake from the amount of power the tyrant was generating, as violent pressure waves were unleashed. A dark red ki surrounded Frieza, before he quickly levitated into the air, matching Trunks' altitude. They were now face to face, and evenly matched in strength. But the tyrant only cackled, looking like he was having the time of his life.

"You have NO IDEA how privileged you are, boy!" Frieza yelled at Trunks, before flashing a grin. "No one has EVER forced me to go to my perfect form, _much less_ to rely on ancient energy sharing with my brother to enhance my power!"

Trunks' power settled at his maximum, before he raised an eyebrow. "Energy sharing…?"

"Indeed. You would have had an advantage before, had you caught me by surprise. But monkeys never were that smart, were they? Now my power is ENDLESS, boy!"

 _DON'T listen to him!_ Vegeta's voice furiously cut in through Trunks' thoughts. _He'll say anything to get you to doubt yourself! I've heard of that ancient technique, and it's NOT endless! They're just leeching power off each other – if you kill one of them, then their power will drop back to normal!_

Trunks nodded. He tightened his grip on his sword, drew in a deep breath, and then rocketed right towards Frieza, who was also closing the distance between them at light speed. Trunks raised his sword over his head and quickly brought it down to slice the tyrant in half, but Frieza phased out of sight, reappearing right behind him. Trunks ducked, avoiding a ruthless kick from behind that would have taken his head off, and then they both phased out of sight.

For a few seconds, no one below could see either of them, but they could hear the powerful blows being blocked and see the brief flashes of golden and red lights from their ki. Vegeta's fists were drawing blood from how hard they were clenched. He was barely able to keep up with the fight as he silently willed his son on.

Finally, the fight came to an abrupt stop when Trunks landed the first punch, nailing Frieza right in the face. The tyrant absorbed the blow with a hiss, and then quickly retaliated by burying his knee hard against Trunks' stomach. Trunks gasped as he doubled over, feeling blood rising in his throat. He had _never_ been hit so hard in his life. Frieza grabbed him by the hair and forced him backwards, raising one powerful fist back, when Trunks took a swing at him with his sword. Frieza phased out of sight again.

Trunks looked frantically around, trying to catch sight of Frieza. The tyrant suddenly appeared right behind him, landing a vicious kick to the base of Trunks' spine. Trunks crashed back to the ground almost instantly, and there was a wild explosion from his landing as the ground was caved and dust rose up into the air.

Vegeta took an unconscious step forward before Goku grabbed him by the arm.

"Remember, we can't get involved. Cooler's watching," Goku whispered.

"I wasn't going to get involved, you idiot. And don't fucking touch me!" Vegeta yelled in Goku's face, yanking his arm free. He turned back to the action, his jaw clenched tight. He was trying not to be emotionally involved, but he was failing. Trunks was his son, and he was facing Frieza, his mortal enemy. There was no one in the universe who could have been more invested in this battle than the Saiyan prince.

Frieza's shrill laughter sliced through the air. "A worthy opponent at last! I shall truly enjoy breaking you, boy!"

 _Get up,_ Vegeta mentally urged his son, who was struggling to get back up to his hands and knees, visibly shaken by the blow to his back and the subsequent impact. Frieza shot down like a torpedo towards Trunks as Vegeta furiously sent, _GET UP, TRUNKS!_

Trunks' golden ki exploded around him again as he shot back up into the air in a golden blur, right as Frieza brutally slammed his knee down into the ground where Trunks' head had been, missing by mere nanoseconds. Frieza sneered angrily as he looked back up towards the Saiyan hybrid, his tail whipping into the ground, cracking it on impact.

The tyrant instantly shot into the air in a beam of red light, and Trunks swung his sword down right as they were about to meet. Frieza phased out of sight and kicked the sword out of his hands, and then they both began exchanging lightning fast misses. It was a blur of moves, blocks, and creative aerial assaults in the hand-to-hand combat that looked like a stalemate.

"Something is wrong," Goku whispered to Vegeta, who was sweating like he was the one in an intense life-or-death battle. "They're equal in strength, but-"

"Shut up, Kakarot!" Vegeta venomously snarled, his eye twitching as he watched Frieza break the stalemate by kicking Trunks hard in the side of the head. Trunks instantly responded, breaking the hand-to-hand combat by firing a powerful golden ki blast that nailed Frieza right in the face, forcing him to back up in midair. Trunks charged right at Frieza, before they both phased out of sight again.

 _Shit,_ Vegeta cursed a minute later as he watched the battle continue. _The fool is right. Something is wrong._

The longer the fight went, the more it looked like Frieza was gaining the advantage. Trunks looked like he was struggling more and more to keep up with Frieza's outstanding speed. And the longer it went, the more punishment Trunks was taking. Vegeta grit his teeth when Frieza slammed an elbow right to Trunks' ribs, making him cough up blood. Trunks furiously, almost desperately, swung back, but Frieza ducked almost with ease, coming up behind the Saiyan hybrid. Before Trunks could even turn around, Frieza had already fired a ki blast of his own that hit Trunks square in the back. Once again, Trunks crashed into the ground, this time with so much force that it almost knocked Goku and Vegeta off their feet.

"He can't keep up," Vegeta relented dismally, feeling like his tongue was burned just by admitting it out loud. "He's not fast enough…"

"I know," Goku whispered, watching as Trunks shakily forced himself to get back up to his hands and knees. "He's got so much strength, but he compromised completely with his speed."

They both fell into a tense silence, neither of them wanting to admit the truth out loud. Trunks was their best shot, but he was going to lose this fight. The only way to regain his speed was to lose some of his power, but Frieza would still be just as strong, and just as fast. It was only a matter of time before Frieza finally wore him down enough and ended the battle permanently.

Vegeta glanced subtly over at Cooler, who was preoccupied with the battle between his brother and Trunks. He then looked back at the battle, and opened up a mental link with Goku.

 _Kakarot, listen!_ Vegeta sent, earning a startled look from Goku. The prince kept his eyes forward as he continued, _We have to help Trunks. He can't do this alone._

"But, how-"

 _Shut up!_ Vegeta snapped harshly. He could feel Cooler's gaze shifting on them, and it made the small hairs on the back of his neck rise as fresh sweat broke out on his body. He was so sure that Cooler was about to attack them, that he spread out his fingers at his side to start gathering up energy to defend himself. But Cooler looked casually back at the battle, smirking in approval as the fight became more and more one-sided in Frieza's favor.

Vegeta took a deep breath, willing his heart to slow down. Finally, he mentally sent- _Don't speak out loud. You'll draw Cooler's attention, you moron. Just listen. I have a plan but we have to do it fast if we're going to have a shot at this._

Goku said nothing, but Vegeta heard back- _What's your plan?_

Trunks was becoming desperate. His speed disadvantage was now brutally obvious, and Frieza had already sniffed it out and was taking full advantage like a rabid shark. Trunks turned around in midair, only to catch another hard punch to the face, forcing blood to fly out of his mouth.

"What's the matter, monkey? Can't keep up? I thought this was going to be a challenge!" Frieza mocked.

Trunks growled and phased out of sight, trying to get some new kind of angle to regain an advantage in the fight that was quickly slipping out of his grasp. As soon as he phased in behind Frieza though, the tyrant did a midair backflip, dodging a kick from Trunks.

"Come on, boy! Fight me!" Frieza shouted, flying higher into the sky as Trunks glared up at him, short of breath now. The Saiyan hybrid drew back his hands, and blue light sparked up between them as he started gathering up energy. Vegeta and Goku exchanged a glance, and shared in a subtle nod as Frieza cackled, "That's the spirit, monk-"

Frieza's words were abruptly cut off when Vegeta phased in right behind him. The prince hooked his arms underneath Frieza's, locking them back and holding him in place, doing it so fast that Frieza didn't have time to react. Down below, Goku's Kaio-ken was in full effect as he landed a brutal kick right to Cooler's head, catching the alien completely by surprise.

" _FIRE, TRUNKS!"_ Vegeta screamed, his muscles strained past the brink as he exerted every ounce of strength he had to keep Frieza in place for the split second that it would take Trunks to fire his attack.

Trunks pulled back to fire, but he hesitated for a fleeting, fraction of a second. He could kill Frieza right now- but would he kill Vegeta at the same time? It took a brief, precious moment of time for Trunks to remember that he could just wish Vegeta back with the Dragon Balls if need be, before he fired the most powerful ki blast he could possibly generate.

But by then, it was already too late.

Frieza threw his head back, slamming the back of his head right into Vegeta's face. The blow alone damn near knocked Vegeta out cold, before Frieza broke through his grasp and then promptly smashed his elbow hard into the prince's neck, forcing the Saiyan to crash back down to the ground. Frieza then turned back, saw the blast spiraling up towards him, and just _barely_ flipped out of the way.

"Goddamnit!" Trunks screamed in frustration, panting from gathering up the energy for his attack. He looked down below, where an enraged Cooler had already recovered. He charged right at Goku, who gave a valiant effort of trying to defend himself, but he was outclassed. It wasn't long before Cooler fired a vicious and powerful ki blast into Goku's chest, sending him flying out of the dirt clearing and crashing into a far away burning building. Trunks watched it all happen, furiously grinding his teeth together, while Frieza laughed.

"Well! Looks like Vegeta and his little friend have broken our arrangement. It seems to me, my half-breed pet, that the deal is off. Cooler? I do believe you wanted to participate, didn't you, dear brother?" Frieza asked in mock politeness, glancing down towards his older brother.

Cooler down below smirked sadistically. His usual M.O. was to finish off who he was killing fast. It was a waste of time to do otherwise. Long torture sessions were Frieza's game, but tonight, he was willing to play that game.

Trunks could barely react before he found himself trying to defend himself against both Cold brothers at the same time. Cooler wasn't as strong as Frieza, but fighting at this speed, it hardly made a difference. Whenever Trunks could land a blow on one, the other capitalized. He was fighting with desperation, which only made him start to slip in his technique. Frieza capitalized with a tenacity that proved why he was the most feared warrior in the universe, kneeing Trunks so hard in the stomach, Trunks could practically feel his insides being destroyed. He doubled over, not even able to take one breath before Cooler roughly grabbed a handful of his golden hair and forced Trunks to arch backwards, letting Frieza slam his elbow hard into Trunks' chest.

Meanwhile, down below, Vegeta slowly struggled up to his hands and knees. His ears were ringing, and he raised a shaking hand to rub his eyes, trying to clear his vision from Frieza's blows. Goku was crawling over to him, badly burned by Cooler's attack. He sluggishly forced himself back up to his feet, and then grabbed Vegeta by the back of the armor with one hand, lifting the prince back up his feet. Vegeta angrily pulled free, resting his hands on his hips, one eye squeezed shut.

"Listen, Vegeta," Goku breathed out. "I think I can do some damage to Cooler. He's not as fast and he's not as sharp as Frieza."

They both watched as Trunks landed back on the ground hard, coughing roughly when he did. His body was shaking as he slowly sat up, sweat running into his eyes. He forced himself to dive out of the way though when Frieza sent a powerful ki blast directly at him. The ground ruptured where he had just been.

"Spit out your plan, Kakarot!" Vegeta impatiently snarled.

"I worked hard in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and I got my best attack down to maybe fifteen seconds to fully charge up. You're a little stronger than me, so you can last longer against Cooler. If you can maybe distract-"

His words were interrupted by Vegeta's blue ki erupting around him in a flash of light, and then the prince was gone.

Cooler was in midair, firing a barrage of ki blasts that were practically hitting Trunks' heels as the Saiyan hybrid sprinted away for his life. The alien's attack came to an abrupt stop, however, when Vegeta came in from out of nowhere and barreled right into him in midair as hard as he could. He and Cooler flew back down to the ground, crashing together in an explosion of their own. Frieza looked over at them in surprise, and Trunks capitalized on the distraction, phasing in right behind the tyrant and kicking him hard in the neck. Trunks' second wind had kicked in, and his fight with Frieza was back on.

Goku dropped down to one knee, and pulled his hands back. Dirt and debris started to rise up around him in response to his power as his red aura flared up around him, his powerful blue ki burning bright in his hands.

"Kaaaahhh…meeehhh…"

Vegeta had only taken a few shots from Cooler, but they were bone jarring blows. The Saiyan frantically blasted up into the air, to gain leverage and also to distract Cooler from the attack that was being generated on the ground.

"HAAAAHHH…MEEEEEHHH…"

Goku's hands were shaking, his muscles strained as his energy skyrocketed. Vegeta was taking one a hell of a beating, but he was just barely hanging in there. Meanwhile, Frieza finally noticed what was going on. He spun around, wide-eyed, and was going to scream at his idiotic brother to look out when Trunks phased in and cut off his words with a hard punch to the face that rocked the tyrant. Frieza sent the warning mentally though, and Cooler finally noticed Goku whose power had surged beyond what he thought him capable of. Vegeta suddenly phased in behind Cooler, and instantly hooked his arms like he'd done to Frieza.

"HAAAAHHHH!"

Goku fired a blast capable of destroying entire worlds, and Vegeta squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for the impact. Cooler screamed, drawing Frieza's attention again. Trunks once again capitalized again on the distraction, quickly gathering up every scrap of energy he had left. When Frieza turned back to face him, Trunks fired his most powerful blast of the night straight at him.

The waves of ki hit both tyrants dead on, and the light exploded with screams of pain that echoed for miles, while the Earth was rocked almost to the core.

Goku's hands were still shaking as he finally lowered them, when things had settled a bit. He squinted through the dust, not able to see a thing. Up above, Trunks was panting as he strained his senses, though he wasn't able to feel either Cold brother.

 _Father?_ Trunks suddenly sent out in a panic, remembering the position Vegeta had been in.

 _I'm fine,_ Vegeta's weak voice responded. The prince was sprawled out on the dirt on his back, unable to stop the tremors spreading through his body. The power of Goku's attack had been completely overwhelming; he had severely underestimated it, and he hadn't even taken the brunt of the attack. But- had it worked? Vegeta raised his head with effort, and instinctively flinched in shock when Goku phased in next to him. He eyed the younger Saiyan warily, wondering if Goku was about to kill him while he was weakened.

"You okay?" Goku asked, extending a hand down to Vegeta. The prince blinked at him in confusion, before scowling at his hand. He slapped it away.

"Where the hell are they?" Vegeta demanded.

"I dunno," Goku responded with a frown, squinting as he tried to get a glimpse of one of the brothers. "I can't sense them or feel them or anything. Think we got 'em?"

"No. It couldn't have been so easy. They must still be around here then. Probably regrouping," Vegeta growled, slowly sitting up while heavily favoring his ribs. "That attack definitely must have hurt Cooler," he added in a heated grumble.

"Man, I sure hope so! I put everything I had in that," Goku said, only now starting to catch his breath again.

Trunks, meanwhile, could hear them both but was too busy trying to get sight of Frieza and Cooler. He slowly descended back to the ground, away from Vegeta and Goku, eyeing his fallen sword which was a few feet away. He struggled to catch his breath, as he waited for some sign of either enemy. It was silent. Trunks quietly squatted down, ignoring the pain in his legs, and retrieved his sword, keeping his eyes up and glancing around while he did. He stood up again, and scowled, continuing his surveillance. It was _too_ silent.

Vegeta was back up on his feet, and had staggered away from Goku to stretch his senses for either brother. Goku went in the opposite direction, with his fists tightly clenched. They all tried to spot something. The silence was that of death, but all three of them could hear their heartbeats clearly. Goku's heart in particular picked up when he suddenly felt Raditz and Gohan flying back to them. He reached out mentally to his brother to warn him to stay away, and to _definitely_ keep Gohan away, when they all suddenly felt it.

A powerful blast of yellow ki sliced through the night air before anyone could even react. Trunks didn't even have time to turn around, before the blast impaled him through his back, and exited from his chest.

Goku and Vegeta both immediately spun back towards him, just in time to see Trunks' sword slowly fall from his hand. He then collapsed face-first into the dirt, in what was horrifically slow motion to Vegeta. Trunks' golden aura slowly disappeared, and his hair faded back to a sweaty lavender. He didn't move again.

"I am DONE with these games," Frieza snarled, standing on the outskirts of the makeshift battleground. He was on top of the remnants of a building that was falling apart and on fire, and Cooler wasn't too far away. "If you want something done, you have to do it yourself…"

Cooler suddenly attacked him before he had even finished the word, but Frieza was expecting it. He phased out of sight right before Cooler got to him, reappeared right behind him, and then ruthlessly sliced his own brother's head off with a blade of ki at the edge of his hand. Frieza threw his head back and callously laughed out loud at his victory. First Trunks, now his brother. The planet - hell, the whole goddamned universe - was now officially his for the taking.

No one was paying him or Cooler any attention though. Goku and Vegeta both charged over to Trunks as soon as he hit the dirt, without a word or a moment's hesitation, though Vegeta did have enough wits to pick up Trunks' jacket on the way. They had turned him over onto his back by the time Frieza looked back at them, and the tyrant quickly started to prepare two orbs of ki on both hands to strike the Saiyans down if they were planning on healing the boy. However, when their frantic effort to save Trunks didn't look like it was going to include giving him whatever healed Vegeta earlier, Frieza dissipated the energy and watched them in cruel amusement, crossing his arms over his chest. It didn't matter one bit that his power had dropped considerably now that he was without Cooler's aid, going back down to his own maximum power. After all, he no longer had a challenge.

But, for once, Frieza was the last thing on Vegeta's mind. He was only focused on his son. Not wasting any time, Vegeta quickly ripped Trunks' leather jacket to pieces, and then covered the wound on his chest with the shreds of leather as he applied pressure. Goku tore at his burnt gi top to do the same. Trunks was convulsing weakly under them as Goku put the shreds of his top around Vegeta's hand. The prince nervously spared his son's face a glance. Trunks' face was white and covered in sweat as he made wet gurgling sounds, fighting the overwhelming darkness creeping into his vision as he struggled to keep his eyes open.

"Stay with me, kid," Vegeta ordered. His gaze shifted over when he felt warmth on his knees. There was blood pooling from underneath Trunks, and Vegeta cursed under his breath when he saw it. "Kakarot. We need more for his back," he said, his voice suddenly rough and his motions more desperate as he tried removing some shreds of leather that were already drenched in blood.

Goku frowned. He put one hand on Trunks' forehead, only to find him in a cold sweat. His eyes were rolling back, the blood running freely from his nose and his mouth. Goku looked up at the frantic prince across from him, who was visibly shaking.

"Vegeta…"

"Shut the fuck up and help me, Kakarot!" Vegeta barked at him.

Goku put his hand over Vegeta's hand which was applying the pressure on Trunks' chest. At the contact, Vegeta finally stopped. He looked up, and made eye contact with the younger Saiyan. Goku shook his head.

The prince looked back down at Trunks' chest. The blood loss was too much, too fast. Trunks' heart was completely destroyed. Vegeta had seen this injury a million times. Inflicted the same injury a million more times. Without extremely fast intervention with a rejuvenation chamber, or something magical like a senzu bean, it was fatal. Always was. Always had been.

And with no one left to defeat Frieza, they weren't going to live long enough to go to Namek. He wasn't going to be able to wish his son back. There was nothing he could do.

He looked up at his son's face. The boy was deathly pale. More unconscious than not, Trunks was struggling to raise his head. Goku withdrew his hand from Trunks' forehead, and it was replaced by Vegeta's bloody one.

"Take it easy, kid," Vegeta said, his voice raw. For some reason, it was unbelievably hard for him to speak.

Trunks tried speaking, but couldn't. All he could taste was blood. He rested his head back and his unfocused eyes briefly settled on Vegeta's.

 _Father. I'm sorry,_ he managed to weakly convey.

 _You should be, you stupid son of a bitch,_ Vegeta softly sent back. _How many times have I told you to always watch your back?_

_I didn't kill him… I'm sorry…_

_You have nothing to be sorry about, Trunks. You did well… I'm proud of you, son._

Trunks managed a weak smile for a second, before his eyes finally slid closed. His weak convulsions stopped, and he was still.

Vegeta fisted a handful of Trunks' bloodied tank top, his eyes tightly squeezed shut. He thought he had experienced pain before. He was wrong. This was true pain, ripping through his chest, freezing his body, burning his soul. A soul he never even knew he had.

Goku was saying something to him, but Vegeta couldn't hear him. His mind was suddenly replaying memories, torturing him with things Trunks had said, things _he_ had said, and things that should have been said. Heat flooded his eyes, burning them with heartbreaking loss, as his hardened and callous shell that he had worn his entire life finally shattered to pieces.

_Do you swear your allegiance to me, boy, on your father's honor?  
Yes. I would die for you._

Vegeta let go of Trunks' tank, one shaking hand going up to cover his face, unknowingly smearing his face with Trunks' blood like it was warpaint. He tried valiantly to keep his tears at bay, but at the thought that he had just lost the only person who gave a damn about him – the only person since he was younger than Gohan to _ever_ give a damn about him – he fell apart.

_You could be so much better.  
Yes, a better warrior.  
A better man._

Fire suddenly exploded through Vegeta's veins. His whole body started shaking in response. Vegeta ran his hands up through his hair. He clenched tight fistfuls of it and bent over, grinding his teeth as the ground started to shake around them. He never noticed Goku dragging Trunks away from him. He never noticed that Raditz and Gohan had finally arrived, and that all eyes were on him now. He never noticed that Frieza was laughing at him. All he knew was that he was losing control. And the more he struggled to get a grasp on his power, the more it slipped away from him.

_Told you not to come back. You did…why…?  
Because you're my father. I had to._

The night sky darkened. The animal in his blood was clawing at his skin, raging to be unleashed. It snarled for vengeance and the raw sound unconsciously ripped from Vegeta's mouth. His ki surged to new levels, making lightning crack the night sky in response.

His parents. His planet. His freedom. His tail. His sanity. Now his son. Trunks. The only one he had left. Frieza had taken _everything_ from him, and this time, it was _just too much_.

Vegeta threw his hands back in tight fists, reared his head back and screamed with soul-wrenching rage.

A potent pressure wave suddenly exploded from him, forcing everyone with Saiyan blood back to the ground and forcing Frieza to shoot up into the air, as all buildings within miles were leveled from the sheer magnitude of power that was released. Electric destiny shot up from Vegeta's feet, up through his spine, up through the spikes of his hair, charging his dark hair until it sparked gold. It shot back down again, fast as lightning, charging every muscle with strength capable of ending the universe. Vegeta's screams intensified, his throat and chest feeling like they were going to rupture as a wave of forceful energy blew up around him.

The ground rumbled violently in response to his inhuman rage as a brilliant light of gold suddenly swept over him. Voltage shot back up and burned his eyes, making them flash teal behind his tears. It shot through his whole body with relentless fury until Vegeta felt like he was going to die from the sheer energy ripping from every pore of his body. He screamed with a wrath twenty-five years in the making as the animal inside of him was finally unleashed. Vegeta's ki ruptured violently, and blinding gold light eclipsed the battlefield. When it finally cleared, Goku and Raditz looked back over at him, and could only blink in shock.

Vegeta was standing now, encased in golden flames that were raging with the pain of a lifetime. His hair was flickering gold as he slowly turned around. His eyes were teal with raw vengeance as he glared up at an absolutely stunned Frieza. Vegeta was practically frothing with rage, his physical pain long forgotten as he shifted into a fight stance. His boot dug into the dirt stained with his son's blood as he readied himself for the battle he'd been waiting for his entire life.

Without further hesitation or a word of warning, Vegeta blasted into the air in a golden blur, with Frieza in his sights.


	21. When the Dust Settles

Frieza saw what was happening, and reacted instinctively by firing a powerful barrage of bright red ki blasts down at the Saiyan who was shooting up towards him in a blind rage. The tyrant blasted off higher into the air to gain more leverage while the ground below was rocked, continuing to fire blast after blast in his anger and shock over the transformation he had just witnessed. Never in the decades spent with the Saiyan prince had he _ever_ thought Vegeta capable of such raw power, for if that had been the case, he would have executed him personally as a boy.

Frieza fired blast after blast while continuing to rocket up in the air, changing up the trajectory of his assault randomly to leave no chance for escape. The smoke continued to soar up higher into the air in response to the deadly and relentless attack as Frieza panted. Through a small parting in the smoke, he caught a flash of gold, and panic ran down the tyrant's back through the tip of his tail. Vegeta would have never survived such an attack before. In a feverish frenzy, Frieza tried firing his blasts faster, only to realize that the magnificent power he had wielded against Trunks was truly out of reach with Cooler dead.

Before Frieza could think of another strategy, his eyes widened in shock as Vegeta furiously blasted through the dark smoke from the ki blasts, unscathed and with single-minded, vengeful purpose. All Frieza saw was a golden blur of light, before Vegeta struck him in the side of the head with the hardest punch the Saiyan had ever thrown in his life. The prince remained high in the air, watching Frieza barrel head over heels down towards the ground from the violent blow. Grinding his teeth together, Vegeta flared up his golden aura, his hatred cracking in the night air along with his ki.

Far from bringing his bloodlust under control, Vegeta was shaking with rage as he pulled his hands back, bright blue ki flashing as he prepared his Galick Gun attack. The ki was already pulsing and growing with deadly intent even before Frieza crash landed back into the ground. Electricity shot up around Vegeta, and he barely noticed his own power until a panicked and familiar voice suddenly cut through the haze of hatred in his mind.

 _Vegeta! That attack will be too powerful!_ Goku mentally shouted.

 _Get out of my head, Kakarot!_ Vegeta furiously sent back.

_But you'll destroy the whole plan-_

_I DON'T CARE!_

Just to prove his point, Vegeta purposely put more power into attack as sparks of electricity surrounded his shaking hands. At the same time, he used his discipline to bring his mind back under his control so he wouldn't be receptive to any of the Saiyans on the ground. This was _his_ fight, and he was going to fight it however he damn well pleased.

In doing so, however, a revelation finally broke through his thoughts. This attack was going to kill Frieza, but his old master didn't deserve such an easy death. Why the hell was he going to give him one? It would be merciful to end this fast, but no one deserved less mercy than Frieza.

"He isn't backing down," Goku hissed to his brother. He had quickly grabbed Trunks while Raditz had grabbed Gohan, and they had hurriedly gotten out of the way when Frieza started firing his missile-like attacks. Now they were kneeling out of sight, watching the battle that was unfolding. Goku had his eyes locked on Vegeta, grinding his teeth as he added, "I can't let him fire that attack-"

"Don't get involved, Kakarot," Raditz growled, hardly aware of Gohan standing very close behind his legs and peeking out at the fight. Ahead of them, Frieza was visibly struggling to stand again. "This is Frieza we're talking about, and this is Vegeta's fight. He'll kill you if you get involved. Believe me."

"But he's going to destroy the pla-"

"He's not. He would have fired already. Look."

They both looked back up, and sure enough, Vegeta still hadn't fired. The Saiyan was too far up in the sky for them to see what he was doing, but when Goku looked back over at Frieza, he immediately put two and two together.

"He's going to draw this out," he realized. "He's going to make this last as long as possible."

Raditz nodded his agreement, and was about to chime in that such a death would be well-deserved, when Vegeta abandoned his Galick Gun powerup and instead flew right back down towards Frieza, intent on beating the tyrant to death with his bare hands. The only warnings Frieza received as he regained his balance were Vegeta's ki rising and a flash of golden light, and then there was a massive explosion as the action moved far too fast for Goku and Raditz to see.

But even before the thick dust had cleared, they knew that in those fractions of nanoseconds, something had gone very wrong. And when they heard Frieza's shrill laughter triumphantly cutting the air, they knew that the battle was only beginning.

"Didn't see that one coming, now did you, my prince?" Frieza mockingly asked, cackling in delight. He was panting, his muscles visibly strained and bulging as he pulled Vegeta's arms painfully behind him. The prince was in a crater on the ground, Frieza's foot firmly on his back, his face twisted in pain. In a cheap shot that he hadn't anticipated, Frieza had formed a long, razor sharp blade of purple ki from his hand down to his elbow, deeply slicing into Vegeta's armor and skin over his ribs before the prince could land his attack. Clouded in his rage, Vegeta hadn't seen it until it was too late, and he had crashed into the ground, damaging himself with his own momentum.

"You dare challenge ME?" Frieza shouted down at him, lowering his foot and brutally shoving the heel where he knew Vegeta's tail stub would be. The prince spasmed in agony, squeezing his eyes shut and desperately sinking his teeth into the rock ground so he wouldn't cry out. He tried harboring the raw power inside of him that he had just wielded moments ago, but his inexperience with that power was completely handicapping him. The profuse bleeding over his ribs wasn't helping either, making it harder for him to breathe.

"Just because you have a new hair color and eye color doesn't mean you can beat me! You're not a Super Saiyan! You're not a prince! You're NOTHING! Nothing but a worthless monkey! And now you're going to die like one!" Frieza shrieked, hooking Vegeta's arms with his tail and firing a ki blast right into the side of the Saiyan's armor where he was bleeding.

The prince ripped more into the rock ground with his teeth as his body shook with humiliation, agony, and rage all at once. His control over his power was slipping by the second, and he wasn't aware of it, but his teal eyes briefly flashed black before he squeezed them shut. He forced the chaos in his mind to settle into what had triggered his power in the first place. His son. Trunks. He was going to avenge him and every other Saiyan killed by Frieza, or die trying.

And if he was going to die, he would be damned to do so at this bastard's feet.

Frieza tried to keep his grip on the prince who was furiously struggling to break free. It was raw strength against raw strength. He was gripping Vegeta's wrists, pulling his arms back unnaturally with so much force, he would have ripped off anyone else's arms by now. But the prince was resisting the motion with just as much force, and they were at a brief stalemate. Their arms were shaking, and the veins on Vegeta's bare arms were pronounced as his new power slowly pulsed through his body. Frieza started to panic as he felt the strength returning to the prince. The tyrant hastily put a white foot down firmly on Vegeta's upper back to keep him in place, but he could practically feel the Saiyan's power zapping the air around them as a golden aura surrounded him once again.

Just as Vegeta was tapping into that power he desperately needed to overpower his enemy, Frieza suddenly let him go. Vegeta spun around quickly, just in time to see Gohan land right in front of him, giving him his back. The prince sat back, rolling his shoulders to alleviate the blazing pain there, one hand going to his side to stop the bleeding. Still, he couldn't keep the shock off his face when he looked over and saw Frieza about twenty yards away and eating dirt.

"Gohan!" Goku and Raditz both yelled in alarm. Vegeta grit his teeth, furiously watching the scene play out in front of him.

"Oh man," Gohan whispered, gulping a little. He had seen the brief change in Vegeta's eyes and had only wanted to help. But now he wondered how smart his decision had been when Frieza slowly turned his deadly gaze to him. The boy took a wary step back, but had no time to do anything else before Frieza suddenly and furiously shrieked-

"You will pay for that with your blood, boy!"

Just as Frieza blasted towards Gohan to kill the young hybrid, he was interrupted by Goku phasing in right in front of his son. The Saiyan barely managed to block a hard punch, but he couldn't stop the knee that plowed right into his stomach. Goku wheezed for air, his hands going around his stomach as he collapsed to his knees in front of Frieza.

"You Saiyans just don't know when to quit," Frieza hissed, raising one hand and curling it into a tight fist to deliver the killing blow. Goku looked back up at him, prepared to fight to the death to protect his son as he readied himself to strike back.

He never got the chance. Vegeta suddenly phased in right behind Frieza, his hand instantly locking around the tyrant's wrist in an unbreakable grip and stopping the attack before it began. Frieza froze, his eyes widening in shock when he felt the strength in Vegeta's hand as the Saiyan slowly started to crush his wrist to pieces. Frieza howled, shooting Vegeta a look of sheer rage.

"Sorry, Frieza. But Kakarot will die by my hand and no one else's, much less yours," Vegeta growled, his golden aura flaring as he raised his ki. With every moment that passed, he was slowly gaining control over the power that had only been available with intense rage. It was strumming inside of his blood, settling with his normal ki and igniting it, giving him strength he never imagined.

"How DARE you! I should have killed you when I had the chance, along with your entire, pathetic, worthless race!" an enraged Frieza screeched, furiously throwing an elbow back to hit Vegeta in the head, and then they both phased out of sight.

Goku scrambled back up to his feet, going over to Gohan to shield him while they watched. He could only catch parts of the battle, since things were moving too fast. Not too far off the ground, Frieza and Vegeta were in a heated battle, exchanging hard shots in a fight of mental toughness as well as physical toughness. But while Frieza was getting slowed down by his injuries, Vegeta was feeding off of his own. Frieza finally broke through, whipping Vegeta hard across the face with his tail, forcing the prince to spin around and fall back to the ground. Vegeta landed on his hands and knees, shaking his head rapidly to recover. Frieza immediately capitalized, growing an enormous purple ball of ki in the palm of his hand as he eyed the Saiyan with pure hatred.

"Take THIS, monkey!" the tyrant shrieked, hurling the purple ball down right as Vegeta looked over his shoulder. The ki ball struck him dead on with the light surrounding him, and then it exploded, forcing Goku and Raditz to shield Trunks and Gohan from the blast that followed. Frieza slowly floated up into the air, panting as he did. A smirk began to spread over his face as he cackled with madness. There was no sign of the prince, as well there shouldn't have been. No one could have survived that.

It took a few seconds before he realized that someone was laughing with him. Frieza blinked, ceasing his mad laughter, and then he heard it more clearly. Looking around, he tried seeing where that laughter was coming from, but he couldn't see anything.

"You know what's _really_ funny?" Vegeta's voice cut through the air, sounding like he was just behind Frieza. The tyrant spun around but saw nothing. He hissed through his nose in frustration while Vegeta mockingly laughed again, "The fact that you thought you ever stood a chance in this fight."

"Where are you?" Frieza snarled, his tail whipping back and forth. "Come out and fight, you coward!"

Impossibly fast, Vegeta appeared and roughly forced Frieza to the ground, his white, bloodied boot firmly planted behind the tyrant's head. The tyrant desperately struggled, but the pressure Vegeta was applying on his head was excruciating. Frieza raised one hand to try to fire a blast to force Vegeta off him, but the prince rapidly and ruthlessly brought his other boot down on that hand hard, crushing it and earning a pained shriek from Frieza. Vegeta had heard these cries before from millions over his lifetime, but it had never sounded as sweet as it did now.

" _Coward?"_ Vegeta yelled down, his gloved fists balling up with rage as he mercilessly drove his foot into Frieza's skull, earning another pained and infuriated screech. "YOU'RE the one who took me from my father when I was a small boy and then lied to me about saving his life! There is only one coward here, and that's YOU!"

"Vegeta, please!" Frieza desperately shrieked, saying whatever it took to save himself now. "I practically RAISED you! I protected-"

"SHUT UP! You killed my family, my entire race, and now you've killed my son!" Vegeta roared, shifting his leg down and delivering a bone-breaking blow to Frieza's back. It was payback for all the times the tyrant had damn near crippled him beyond what the rejuvenation tanks could heal, and the raw sound of pain released from the tyrant was music to his ears. Vegeta reached down in a fevered attempt to cause more pain and tear off the closest limb he could reach – which was Frieza's arm. He only managed to get a grip though, before Goku phased in right in front of them.

Goku's eyes narrowed. "Vegeta, that's enough, it's over-"

His words stalled when Vegeta let go of Frieza's arm and pointed right at his heart in warning, a small ball of blue ki forming on his fingertip.

"You and I will have our day in the future, Kakarot, I guarantee you," Vegeta growled, his teal eyes swarming with vengeance. "That day isn't today, not when you haven't ascended yet and you're not a challenge. But if you don't back the fuck up _right now,_ I will kill you right here in front of your son. What's it going to be?"

Goku took one slow step back, more to calm the prince's temper than out of fear. While Vegeta was stronger than him at this moment in time, he wasn't afraid of him. If anything, he was understanding of the man for the first time since they'd met.

"Do what you want, Vegeta. I can't stop you anyways," Goku finally said after a tense silence only broken by Frieza's helpless struggling under Vegeta's foot. "But he's asking for mercy, and…"

Goku's words suddenly died as images flashed through his mind of Frieza and Vegeta, horrible images that showed him pain and suffering the likes of which he'd never even imagined. He was seeing the prince as a boy, barely older than his own son, enduring tortures that would have broken men five times his age. It was a never ending cycle of violence that left Goku reeling, until the images mercifully stopped. He gazed at Vegeta in shock, not believing that the prince had projected all of that to him, when he heard-

_There. That's why you need to stay the hell out of this._

Except that wasn't Vegeta's voice. That was Raditz speaking. Goku looked back at his brother in amazement, and when he saw the serious look he received in return, he numbly nodded. He looked back at Vegeta and Frieza, and took another step back. While he usually thought people could change, from what Raditz had told (and shown) him, and from what he'd seen himself, Frieza wasn't fitting the bill.

Vegeta didn't know (and would never know) why Goku backed off, but he didn't care. Turning his attention back to Frieza, he finally raised his boot, making the tyrant gasp in relief. His tail was twitching, as were his legs. The prince paid that no mind as he slowly walked around so he was in front of the tyrant, and he smirked in satisfaction.

" _You_ kneeling to _me_ , the Saiyan prince," he taunted. "Perhaps there is balance in the universe after all."

"You think you've won? You haven't won anything!" Frieza screamed, raising his head to make eye contact with the prince looming over him.

"Oh I don't think I've won – I know I've won. Here. Let me prove it."

Vegeta reached down, roughly hauled Frieza up, and then flung him high into the air. The tyrant somewhat regained his form in midair, wincing from his pain as he looked down towards Vegeta, but the prince was nowhere to be found.

"Damn you and your games, Saiyan!" Frieza screamed, embarrassed and incensed that he was now being toyed with. "I won't be beaten, especially not by some monkey runt that I RAISED!"

"Rest assured, this is no game," Vegeta's rough voice growled from behind him. Frieza spun around, only to find himself staring at a familiar gloved and bloodied palm, inches from his face. The tyrant paled, his eyes widening. Vegeta's eyes narrowed. "See you in hell, Frieza."

He then fired a violent and powerful golden ki blast, disintegrating every last cell of his enemy. The night sky lit up with the blast, briefly lighting the ground below for miles. Then the light was gone, and the dust settled. It was finally over.

Vegeta landed lightly on the ground moments later, feeling like he could truly breathe for the first time in his life. It was like an unbearable weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He was _free_ , and he laughed out loud like a madman from the exhilarating thought. He bent over as his hair slowly faded back to black, that invigorating power receding for the time being. The prince rested his hands on his knees, only now feeling the full impact from the tough shots he'd taken. The pain felt good though. It was a sign that it had really happened. The battle had finally come, and he'd won.

"I did it," he whispered to himself, before laughing again.

"You did it," Raditz proudly echoed, drawing Vegeta's attention. Gohan and Goku were standing not too far from him, looking more than pleased over the end result. The prince scanned the three over. The only survivors with Saiyan blood, they were all that remained of his people. For a brief moment, he wished Nappa was there to share in his victory, but he didn't like the guilt that filled his chest with that thought. He forced that all away as he glanced back over at his son's body.

"Namek?" he asked aloud, ready to leave as soon as possible to rid those lasting images of Trunks out of his mind.

"We'll go once Bulma fixes us up some spaceships to make the trip," Goku answered, following the prince's gaze. "Don't worry though. Now that Frieza's gone, we don't have anything to worry about."

"There are space pods all over this planet from the forces Frieza brought."

"That's true. Then it probably won't take very long."

"Hn," Vegeta grunted, looking down at the nasty, deep cut on the right side of his armor which was soaked in blood. "Damn cheap shot," he muttered, his fingers probing the bloodied wound to gauge how bad it was.

"You want to go back to Bulma's so she can have someone take a look and make sure you're alright?" Raditz offered.

Vegeta scowled, and then shook his head. The only thing he knew was that the euphoria and adrenaline of his victory were sweet, but he couldn't dwell on that for long. There was work to be done to ensure his son would be brought back to life soon. But first, he needed to rest and recharge. His ascension had been overwhelming, and his body wasn't used to such power.

"Well, the sooner we can get to Namek, the better," Goku sighed, putting a hand on Gohan's shoulder while he looked over at the destruction of his planet. There was fire and screaming in the distance, but they would heal and recover with the Dragon Balls. He looked back at Vegeta and offered a small grin, much to the prince's shock. "Guess we're on the same side now, huh? Just like in Trunks' time?"

Vegeta's eyes narrowed in warning. "I don't want to kill you until you become a worthy challenger, Kakarot. But if you tempt me, I might be convinced to change that stance."

Unfazed by the threat and excited over the prospect of an epic battle in the future, Goku smiled. "I'm looking forward to that fight then."

"Alright, let's get out of here already," Raditz cut in, before either of his fellow full-blooded Saiyans changed their minds and another battle commenced. He turned to go retrieve Trunks, hesitated a second, and then turned back to Vegeta. "Bulma gave me a spare capsule house that I've been using. She could probably give you one too. I could ask her if you want."

The prince's lip twitched in disgust over how much his comrade had acclimated to Earth. He shook his head and then turned around, giving them all his back. Catching the hint, Raditz turned to Goku and motioned for them to leave. Goku shrugged and put a hand on his son's shoulder, leading the boy away. Raditz went over to Trunks and he raised him up with renewed respect. The brothers cast Vegeta a last glance, and then left to begin dealing with the next steps.

Vegeta stood alone for about twenty minutes, in the center of the makeshift battlefield. The smell of death was thick in the air, but he didn't notice as he lost himself in thought over what he was going to do now. It was ridiculous. This was his time – his time to rule and fulfill his destiny. It should have been an easy decision, and he didn't understand why he was having second thoughts now.

It took a few minutes before he realized he was subconsciously staring at Trunks' sword, discarded and abandoned in the distance. Going over, he squatted down and picked up the weapon, examining it the exact same way Trunks had done before traveling back in time. How or when exactly Trunks went from being a no-name half-breed to a son he would shed tears for in front of others, Vegeta didn't know. All he knew was that he didn't regret the attachment, and wasn't ashamed of it either. His relationship with his son was a good thing. Perhaps the only good thing he would ever have.

Vegeta pulled off one ripped and bloodied white glove, turning it inside out. Standing up, the prince used the glove to clean the sword while glancing around. He could hear sirens in the distance coming closer. Deciding that it was his cue to leave, the prince took to the air to search for a haven to get some badly needed rest. It took a long time of flying before he got away from the death, panic, and destruction below him and found some untouched spots on the planet. He relished in the peace of the wilderness he descended into as he came down on a small landing on a mountain.

It wasn't until he sat down against a rock wall that his exhaustion finally caught up to him. His eyes were already heavy as he weakly ripped off some blue, bloodied spandex below his knees to stuff into his armor over the wound that was bleeding the most. He tucked his gloves in there too, for good measure. In addition to that annoying injury, he had more than a few broken bones from battling Cooler, enduring Goku's Kamehameha attack, and then fighting Frieza. But none of it was life-threatening. He wiped the blood off his face with a shaking hand, and grabbed Trunks' sword again, leaning back to watch the view.

Even though the prince fell into a deep sleep shortly afterwards, his right hand never loosened its grip on the handle of his son's sword.

* * *

Bulma thought she had all the motivation in the world for ensuring a trip to Namek. But when Goku and Raditz brought back her son's lifeless body to her home, it turned out that she had been wrong. Her mind, so brilliant and logical, couldn't make any sense out of the grief that overwhelmed her. She barely even knew Trunks, and yet she cared for him as though she had raised him herself.

Finally, she just stopped analyzing how she felt. It didn't matter. The solution was to work harder to get them to Namek as soon as possible. That was the only way to get her son back, not to mention her friends and her loving boyfriend.

"Would you be careful, you Saiyan lunkheads? You might break those if you drop them!" Bulma angrily shrieked at Raditz and Goku several days later. The two Saiyans were each carrying a space pod that had crash landed on the planet during the attempted purge, eager to have Bulma and her father start working on them right away.

Raditz rolled his eyes, following his brother beyond the construction being done to repair Capsule Corp. "These things are resilient. They're not going to break if they fall a few feet-"

"Hey, when I want your opinion, I'll ask for it!" Bulma yelled at him. "Now put the pods over there so we can start looking at them!"

Raditz grumbled under his breath, but he and Goku did as she asked. The oldest brother then left while Goku and Bulma talked things over, stepping back outside. As he had been doing several times a day, he reached out his senses for Vegeta. As usual, he couldn't locate the prince, nor could he establish any type of mental connection. He would have been extremely concerned had Goku not told him that he had gotten a sense of Vegeta's ki signature while searching for functional space pods the day before. It was low but steady, and so the warriors had concluded that he was likely resting. Not that it stopped Raditz from trying, though.

The eldest Saiyan couldn't help the swelling of pride in his chest as he replayed the legendary transformation he had seen Vegeta achieve. It had been playing over and over again in his mind, and he didn't care. He was just grateful that he lived long enough in this timeline to see such a thing.

"Trying to sense Vegeta again?" Goku chuckled from behind him.

"No. Just enjoying the view," Raditz sarcastically replied as his brother came to stand next to him.

"Do you think he'll come with us to Namek?"

"I'm not sure what his plans are," Raditz admitted, looking off towards the distance again.

"Yeah, but you know how badly he wanted the Dragon Balls before. I'm not sure we can trust him, especially with his power now," Goku warned. If push came to shove, he could battle the prince now. It wouldn't be easy, but his power was also right on the cusp of the transformation. The challenge would likely push him to ascend, and with a level playing field, who knew what could happen?

"We can trust him. Vegeta only wanted the Dragon Balls to defeat Frieza. Now all he wants is his son revived."

"Yeah, Bulma does too. I got the coordinates for Namek from King Kai, and I've never seen her so motivated to get us there," Goku marveled. "We'll be off to Namek in no time I bet."

 _Small wonder she caught Vegeta's attention,_ Raditz thought, shaking his head. "We're bringing the boy with us, right?"

Goku looked confused. "What boy? Gohan?"

"Who else?"

"Oh, well, I convinced Chi-Chi to let him come. I don't know if the Namekian dragon will be strong enough to wish back everyone who died, but if it isn't, then we'll just revive Piccolo. Then we can have the Dragon Balls on Earth again."

"Well, we'll soon find out. We need another space pod first though. The humans are already collecting and destroying most of them, so let's get one before they're all gone," Raditz ordered. He didn't even wait for his younger brother to respond before he took to the air, heading back towards the rural area miles and miles away where they had found the two untouched space pods. Hopefully there would be another functional one close by that the humans hadn't noticed yet.

Goku's ki burst around him, and he was about to take off after his brother when he suddenly froze. The Saiyan cocked his head to one side, scratching the back of his head. He then glanced back towards the compound, blinking in surprise. He stood his ground for a moment longer, and then turned around, taking into the air after Raditz. As he flew, he couldn't help the small grin that broke out over his features.

Meanwhile, Bulma was working like a madwoman. The space pods were new and advanced, so advanced that Goku had told her Raditz hadn't recognized the internal controls at all. In any other circumstances, she would've been impressed and drooling over the advanced alien technology. Instead, she was working diligently at rewiring the voice activation so the Saiyans would be able to use the pods. It was a simple but tedious affair, but with her father back in town and her engineers working hard, she figured she could have it done in a day.

Finally after about a half hour, she decided to take a short break. Her mind was working almost too fast, causing her to make simple errors. Not to mention have a short fuse with her engineers. Leaving them and her father to handle the workload for a little while, Bulma contemplated going outside for a cigarette. But she got derailed along the way, going down below the medical wing and stopping outside of a door and peeking in through the glass to see Trunks. She had spent the last few days situating her son's body so that it would be in good condition when he was revived. Where these strong maternal instincts were coming from, she wasn't sure, but she wasn't fighting them away either.

"Don't worry. We'll wish you back in no time. I promise," Bulma whispered, regarding him sadly through the glass. They had lost so many; not for the first time, she wondered what they would have done without the Dragon Balls.

Minutes later, she reached down into the pocket of her lab coat, pulling out a packet of cigarettes while making her way back up to the main level. Just as she was going to step outside for a quick smoke, she heard a crashing sound down the hall of the medical wing. The heiress grumbled angrily under her breath; she could have sworn she had given everyone time off so no one could see Trunks. The last thing she needed was to dodge explaining the Dragon Balls.

Marching down the hall and not even bothering to knock, she barged into a medical room, her words already spilling out, "Hey look, I appreciate the work ethic, but I need…"

Her words died when she saw the sight that welcomed her. Sitting on an examination table with his back towards her was Vegeta, and Bulma's first panicked thought was that no one was there to protect her. Though she lacked all the details, she already knew the gist of how Frieza had been defeated, and it gave her no comfort to be in the same room with him. Not with how strong he had become. Bulma slowly took a step backwards, hoping he wouldn't chase her if she ran. She had no hope of outrunning him, but there was a rifle with some loaded D-NAD laying around somewhere-

"I'm not here to kill you, female," Vegeta roughly said, not bothering to even look at her. His upper body was exposed, and he was staring down at his right side, both hands tending to an injury Bulma couldn't see. When he pulled one hand up though, Bulma saw a thin, bloodied thread, and she realized that he was stitching himself up. She cringed a little when she saw the size of the needle he was using as he nastily added, "After all, I can't get off this damn rock without you, now can I?"

Her fear subsided, and feeling braver, she asked, "You're going with the others to Namek?"

The heiress waited for a response, but didn't get one. Vegeta ignored her, reaching over to a bin next to him and digging for a clean towel, throwing useless items aside to the floor. Bulma stood there, watching as he cleaned off the blood off the wound, staining the white towel in crimson. He then picked up the needle and resumed stitching the gash. She grimaced, not missing the way his hands moved expertly and the way he never flinched, like he'd done this to himself many times before.

Slowly, Bulma's gaze drifted up his arms and settled on his bare back. The marks and deep scars he bore with no shame or regret stood out on his tanned skin, permanent reminders of a past he would never be fully free from. She couldn't help but wonder how someone, much less a _Saiyan,_ could receive punishment extreme enough to leave those types of scars. Unconsciously, she tugged on her lab coat, unable to tear her eyes away from the pain written on his back. For just a moment, Bulma almost forgot her personal feelings towards the prince as pity overwhelmed her.

"And just _what_ are you looking at?" Vegeta peevishly demanded, snapping the moment and bringing the heiress back to her senses.

"Nothing," Bulma dismissively responded. She turned to leave, highly uncomfortable just being in the same room with him, but she stopped when he spoke again.

"You have Trunks here?"

"Yeah. He's here so his body can be taken care of, for when he's revived," she explained, looking off towards the wall cabinets in fake interest while he kept his eyes on his stitches. She kept her tone matter-of-fact, like he was nothing but an employee as she continued, "We'll wish for Piccolo back first-"

Suddenly, she had Vegeta's complete attention. Bulma looked back, and tried not to be afraid, but she couldn't help the tingle of fear in her spine over the way he was looking at her. The dark intensity in his eyes frightened her the most. The man was terror in the flesh. Not for the first time, she wondered how the hell Trunks had been conceived in the first place.

"The first wish will be used to bring my son back to life, and for nothing else. And if I find out it's any different, I will take the boy with me to Namek and destroy this whole fucking planet-"

"First of all, Trunks isn't just YOUR son!" Bulma snapped before she could stop herself. "He's my son too, you know, and I want him back as much as you do!"

Vegeta ripped the last thread off his stitches, before grasping the edges of the table he was sitting on, trying hard to keep his temper in check before he quite literally coated the room with her blood. The human woman was annoying, to say the least, and he didn't understand how the hell he put up with her long enough for Trunks to be conceived. There was nothing even remotely tolerable about the female besides her good looks. And if it wasn't for the fact that he was going to face his son again, she would already be dead in a pool of her own blood, while he stood over her and laughed.

Bulma couldn't ignore the grinding sounds of the metal table twisting under Vegeta's fingers, a small taste of the enormous strength he possessed. Reminding herself of what Goku had told her, Bulma thoughtfully bit her lip for a second.

"Look. Wishing Piccolo back will bring the Dragon Balls back here on Earth," she sighed, being mindful of her tone so she wouldn't anger him further. "But if the dragon can do it, then we'll wish back _everyone_ that died except for the evil monsters. Piccolo needs to be wished back either way. You know that's what Trunks would want us to do."

"You knew Trunks for all of two fucking seconds," Vegeta sneered in contempt as he smoothly got off the table. He picked up his chest plate of armor, his back still to her. "Don't pretend to know what he would have wanted. The boy is dead-"

"He _will_ live again," Bulma swore with so much determination, it made him look over his shoulder at her. "You don't have to believe me, and to be quite honest, I don't give a shit if you don't. But I care about Trunks too, and I already lost him once since he won't be born in this timeline. I _won't_ lose him again."

Vegeta stared at her in silence, his eyes narrowed in scrutiny. Bulma bravely matched his gaze, refusing to be intimidated as she silently dared him to challenge the legitimacy of her words. Her hands were sweating though. Did he have to stare at her like that, with such a degree of savage intensity like he was going to kill her in the next few seconds? She tried her best to decipher what he was thinking, but she might as well have been trying to read a brick wall.

After seconds that felt like an eternity, Vegeta looked away and Bulma let out a sigh of relief. The prince quickly tugged on his chest plate of armor, uncaring of the damage through the torso where Frieza had almost mortally wounded him.

"Then I suggest you go and get to work on those space pods if you know what's good for you," Vegeta threateningly added, slipping on his dirtied white gloves.

Bulma frowned, but wisely didn't push the matter further. After all, she did need to get back to work, and talking to Vegeta was like pulling teeth. She felt exhausted from the effort and they hadn't even conversed for long. She had no clue how Trunks could handle him for so long.

The heiress opened the door to leave, and for some reason she didn't know, she chanced a look back at Vegeta. He was standing at the open window, staring out at the destruction in the distance. It took a moment before Bulma realized he had the tip of Trunks' sword on the floor, a few fingers on top of the handle swaying the sword. For better or worse, he did give a damn about his son, even if he didn't know how to express it or show it. She almost didn't believe it when Goku had told her so, but if she briefly looked past her hatred for him, she could see it.

"Vegeta, things between me and you-"

Trunks' sword steadied. Vegeta's grip visibly tightened on the handle of it as he interrupted, "There is no _me and you_ , female. And there never will be, so get it out of your head right now."

"I already knew that. I can't forgive you for what you've done to me, for how much you've hurt me-"

"I don't ca-"

"I know! You don't care, I already know that! Would you just let me speak?" she asked him in exasperation. Bulma was silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts, and her tone was softer when she added, "Look. Despite all of that, despite everything I've seen you do and everything I haven't seen you do…I'm sorry you had to see Trunks die so violently in front of you. I know you care about him, and no father deserves that. Not even you."

Silence for a second, until he responded in a terse voice, "I neither asked for your pity, nor do I want it. You're lucky you're not dead already because of it."

"I'm not-"

"Get out. _Now._ "

Bulma threw her hands up, turned around, and did as he asked, slamming the door on her way out for emphasis. She was frustrated and annoyed with herself for even trying to extend some kind of olive branch to him. He didn't deserve it anyways. She should have known better.

Vegeta remained rooted to the spot at the window, seething over their brief interaction. But he had bigger things to worry about than the female, and with considerable effort, he forced himself to stop thinking about the young heiress. The Earthlings knew more about the Dragon Balls than he did; he had no doubt they would go to Namek and do as Bulma said. That meant he didn't have to go with them, which freed him to do…what, exactly?

In the end, it came down to two choices. Leave Earth and take his place as emperor of the universe, restoring the legacy of the Saiyan race…or stay on Earth and destroy the androids who killed him in the future, ensuring that the terror of Trunks' timeline wasn't repeated. He couldn't do both, since it would take valuable time to prepare for the androids, time that he wouldn't have if he was preoccupied keeping the universe under his command.

Do what his father would want, or do what his son would want. He sighed.

Vegeta's eyes focused ten minutes later when he sensed Goku and Raditz flying back, with Gohan trailing behind them. Goku was carrying a space pod in his arms as they all descended on the dying grass. Bulma was already outside to greet them, and they started to obey her command to take the space pod inside. Vegeta scowled over how passive they all were, and then leaned Trunks' sword up against the wall. He slowly climbed through the open window.

"Raditz!" he barked, immediately drawing everyone's attention. Raditz turned and said something to his brother and Bulma, and then jogged back over to Vegeta while everyone else went inside.

"Vegeta! I've been trying to reach you," Raditz said, visibly pleased to see his prince again. "I couldn't get through to you at all. I was starting to think maybe you left the planet," he joked with a smirk.

"Hn. I just didn't want to be disturbed by you idiots," Vegeta gruffly replied, crossing his arms over his chest. Truth was, he had been sleeping to recover his strength again. It would take him some time before he could make the legendary transformation as effortlessly as Trunks could. He glanced back at the compound. "Report."

"Bulma says she could probably have us out to Namek by tomorrow. She just has to break the code for the voice activation or something like that. These pods are new. Look more comfortable too."

"Who is going?"

"Kakarot, his boy, and me. Bulma wants to come along, but Kakarot says it's best if she doesn't. She might get in the way."

Vegeta scowled. "How the hell would she get in the way? She's a genius, isn't she? You two idiots would probably need someone with technical skills around."

Raditz cocked his head to one side, looking at Vegeta with a puzzled expression. He then raised an eyebrow, a mocking smirk spreading over his face. "Are you _defending_ the female, Vegeta? Becoming interested in her, are we?"

The prince's eyes widened to almost comical proportions, and it would have been hilarious to Raditz had that familiar fury not rushed over Vegeta's features immediately afterwards. Raditz never even saw him move, but a sharp pain dropped him to his knees, Vegeta's hand wrapping tighter than steel around his throat a heartbeat later.

"Don't – insinuate – that – again," Vegeta sneered, mercilessly tightening his grip with each word as Raditz clawed at his hand. "That bitch means _nothing_ to me, and Trunks will _not_ be born in this timeline. I have already decided to be merciful with you, so don't fucking push your luck, Raditz."

Raditz barely managed a nod, his face bright red, before Vegeta roughly released him. The prince crossed his arms, his features hard as he watched Raditz cough between desperate gasps of air. The Saiyan looked up at Vegeta warily. It wasn't the first time he'd received such a reaction from the prince, but it was the first time it had ever been over a female. It appeared that joking about a potential relationship between Bulma and the prince was going to join the list of topics never to bring up around Vegeta. Over the years, that list had turned into a lengthy one.

"Namek is on the outskirts of the southwest sector," Vegeta continued, as though nothing had happened while Raditz slowly stood up. "It won't take you long to get there in these space pods, especially if they're new. It probably won't even take an Earth day. But how long until the Dragon Balls on Earth can be used again after they're restored?"

"I'm not sure," Raditz hoarsely answered. "Kakarot isn't sure either. We don't know if they will be active immediately or if we will have to wait for them to recharge. Worst case scenario, it could take up until a year."

"A _year_?" Vegeta gasped in disbelief, before his eyes narrowed angrily as he yelled, "It might take a whole fucking year to wish Trunks back?"

"That's worst case scenario, Vegeta," Raditz explained, swallowing a little when he felt Vegeta's ki start to rise. He braced himself, but the prince turned around to give him his back, running one hand up through his hair in frustration. "Maybe it'll be sooner. Plus, we might be able to wish everyone back with the wish anyways."

"Unbelievable," Vegeta grumbled, shaking his head. He hated counting on "maybe's". He had been doing that his whole life.

"Do you want to come with us?"

"No. I'm sure you aren't incompetent enough to ruin a wish…though I'm not sure I can say the same about your imbecile of a brother."

"He won't ruin it. We can get it done," Raditz assured, trying not to show his surprise over the fact that Vegeta was trusting him enough not to get personally involved. He subtly gave the prince a once over, searching for any lingering injuries from the battle days ago, as though that would explain the change in his usual behavior.

His eyes snapped back up in shock though when Vegeta casually asked, "What do you think of this shit hole of a planet, Raditz?"

"What do you mean?"

"Would you like to stay here and help these Earthlings battle against the androids?"

Raditz scowled, scratching the back of his head. Finally he shrugged. "I suppose. Where else would I go? Not like there are many options."

"Well, I am considering reuniting the remnants of the Galactic Armies instead of destroying them, and taking over as the new emperor," Vegeta stated matter-of-factly. Raditz nodded, not entirely surprised. That had always been Vegeta's plan since the first day they were all brought under Frieza's service. The prince then turned back to face him, looking him right in the eye. "If I were to go that route, you would become one of my top men. But it's your choice."

"As a Saiyan, I have no choice. You are the Prince and the Legendary. I'll do whatever you need me to do, Vegeta," Raditz said, bowing his head respectfully.

"You will serve me directly or you will remain here protect my son's home planet. Either way, you will do my bidding. I am merely giving you the choice of which way you would like to do so. Think about it, and let me know what your decision is when I return."

"When will that be?"

"Before your trip to Namek. Let me know when that is," Vegeta ordered, tapping his temple twice with his index finger.

"I will," Raditz assured. Vegeta turned around to leave, his blue ki igniting around him, when Raditz called back out, "Vegeta!"

The prince stopped and looked back over his shoulder expectantly, impatience in his dark eyes. "What?"

Raditz stayed silent, and then spoke confidently. "I don't have to think about it. I'm going to stay on Earth." Vegeta raised an eyebrow, silently questioning, and so Raditz added, "I'm sure."

"Don't get too comfortable with your brother, Raditz. When he ascends, he will die by my hand. Regardless of the decision that I make, _that_ won't change."

"We'll see what happens."

"Hn," Vegeta grunted, his eyes narrowing. Of course Raditz would side with his brother. He had already proven that much. Vegeta turned away as he ordered, "Let me know when the loud wench is done with her repairs."

The prince's blue ki flared up, and then he was gone so fast Raditz couldn't tell which way he went. Vegeta was hardly aware of his speed, his mind racing. How easy it had been for the other Saiyan to make his decision. Maybe it should've been easy for him too, but it wasn't. He wasn't a third class soldier. He was the last prince of his race, a Saiyan Elite. It wasn't so simple to just turn his back on that, regardless of how fond he had become of his son.

Suddenly, he remembered that he would have to go into space anyways; either to take over the remains of the Cold empire, or to destroy it. And if he was going into space anyways…

As if on cue, he spotted something white below, in the wet sand next to an enormous body of water. It was round and immediately recognizable: an unclaimed space pod. The water rushed up underneath the space pod, and the vehicle started to slowly roll into the water. It was starting to submerge when it came to a dead stop. Vegeta was behind it, submerged in water from the waist down as he effortlessly held the space pod in place with one hand. He frowned in thought, and then slowly rolled the pod back out onto the sand.

His mind was made up before his boots reached dry sand. He was leaving the planet for good. The androids would be someone else's responsibility. And if the Earthlings managed to stop Goku from having his fatal heart virus, then Vegeta would come back and finish him off personally after the androids were gone.

In the meantime, he had a destiny to reclaim.


	22. A Father's Promise

Two days later, Bulma was standing outside now, peeking into one of the three space pods in her half-destroyed backyard. It was the only place to put them so they wouldn't be easily seen by anyone except those with Saiyan blood. Fortunately for Bulma, the Earthlings were all far too preoccupied with the destruction done to Earth during the alien invasion and the epic battle that came along with it. The coast was clear for the Saiyans to depart to Namek without drawing too much attention.

Bulma was bent over, half inside the space pod as she double-checked its fuel level, when she heard Goku's voice. Her friend was arguing with Raditz while the two descended down into the backyard with Gohan in tow.

"If you didn't look exactly like our father, I would swear that we were not related," Raditz sneered, walking over to a space pod that Bulma wasn't looking at, his brother and nephew on his heels.

"But we're not going to _anything_ but sit inside of these pod things," Goku whined. "Why can't I bring the lunch Chi-Chi made me?"

"This is a mission to restore the lives of people on your planet, not a vacation as we cruise through space. Or are you not interested in gathering the Dragon Balls?"

"Of course I'm interested! I'm just hungry!"

"Your woman already fed us before we came here," Raditz replied, before adding under his breath, "…would have _never_ survived working for Frieza, that's for sure…"

Goku heard his brother and he frowned, falling into silence. The most information he had gotten regarding what things were like for Raditz under Frieza's reign were the glimpses his brother gave him during Vegeta's battle with Frieza. But he had known Raditz now for some time, and he had pieced parts of the puzzle together on his own. He was pleased that Frieza was officially out of the picture, and his brother would never have to go through those things again.

"Alright," Bulma said, climbing out of the space pod. She patted the top of it in satisfaction, a smug look on her face. "This bad boy's ready to go. I just need to give you guys the communication devices I made, and then that should be it!"

"Remember that any _communication devices_ need to let us establish contact on a planet as far as Namek," Raditz sneered in condescension, opening up the space pod he was going to occupy.

"All I did was replicate the communication chip on your scouters, buddy. Don't forget that behind these gorgeous looks is a brilliant mind," Bulma arrogantly informed him. Raditz frowned as Bulma approached them. The heiress handed Goku three black headsets with a microphone attached. Raditz snatched one for himself, and Goku handed one to Gohan, who took it like he was handling fragile glass.

"I've been working on replicating the communication in Raditz' scouter ever since he got here, so hopefully these things will work. But if they don't, I synced up the communication on your space pod to my own headset here. This way if you guys need anything, you can get a hold of me. You also have my old Dragon Ball scouter, right?"

"Yeah," Goku said with a smile, looking down at his son who was putting on his headset. "Gohan's got it, don't you, son?"

"I do. I want to find the Dragon Ball as soon as possible, so I can wish Piccolo back," Gohan proudly announced as Goku put a hand on top of his head.

"I'm just impressed that Chi-Chi agreed to let you go," Bulma teased.

"You and me both," Raditz mumbled, climbing into his space pod. "Enough with the talk. Let's get a move on."

Goku was going to respond, when he suddenly looked back towards the compound, concentration settling into his features. Bulma and Raditz followed his line of site, only to see Vegeta leaning back against the wall, his arms crossed over his armor with his ankles casually crossed.

"Well, what have we here?" Vegeta finally asked out loud, locking eyes with Raditz. "You were all going on a little vacation, and I wasn't invited?"

"You said you didn't want to come," Raditz countered. When he saw the way Vegeta's eyes darkened with rising anger, Raditz gave a brief nod of respect and quickly spoke before he earned any retaliation. "Apologies, Vegeta. I just thought you said-"

"I said to let me know when you would be leaving, didn't I?" Vegeta interrupted.

"Well, we're leaving now to Namek, so now you know," Goku cut in before Raditz could answer, immediately drawing Vegeta's attention. Though he was speaking with his usual kind tone, Goku's right hand was clenched into a tight fist out of instinct, his senses on full alert. "Is there anything else you needed, Vegeta?"

"Now that you ask, there is indeed something I need," Vegeta responded in a mockingly kind voice. He pushed himself off the wall, walking past them until he slowly started circling the space pod Bulma had been looking at. He examined it carefully. The prince put one gloved hand on the pod, and without looking up, he casually asked, "Do I have your word, Kakarot, that you will do this mission as you claim and wish my son back to life?"

Goku and Raditz exchanged a brief look, before the younger brother answered, "We're going to do our best, Vegeta. If we only get one wish, then we're wishing for Piccolo back to restore the Earth's Dragon Balls."

"The woman already mentioned that, and after some thought, I think that would make the most sense. But the question is, how can I trust that you will do as you say, hmm?" Vegeta casually asked, continuing to circle the space pod. It was in much better condition than the abandoned space pod he had found. Vegeta finally looked back at Goku, distrust darkening his features. "How do I know you're not going to wish for ultimate strength in order to defeat me?"

"My concern right now is wishing everyone back that we've lost," Goku seriously informed him. "All the innocent people that have died here, and all of our friends. We're bringing them all back. Trunks is your son but he's also Bulma's son and my friend. We're going to wish him back, I guarantee it."

Vegeta was silent as he studied the younger Saiyan in front of him, casually drumming his fingers on top of the space pod while he contemplated what to do. Bulma, Raditz, and Gohan were both anxiously looking back and forth between them. The air was tense for time that seemed much longer than it was, until Vegeta finally gave a conceding nod.

"Your intentions are true, Kakarot, but the problem is that I'm not sure I trust you to follow through when you're finally asked to make any wish you want. Speaking like this is fine here on your home planet, but when the time comes, will you stand by your words in the face of that temptation?"

"Yes," Goku asserted with a nod. "I will."

"I'm not sure I believe that," Vegeta sneered. "I think I need a stronger guarantee than your word."

Goku awkwardly scratched the back of his head, frowning in puzzlement. "Um, sure, like what?"

Vegeta's dark eyes shifted to Bulma briefly, making the heiress shrink back a little behind Goku. The prince then looked over in Gohan's direction. Goku didn't like that one bit, nor did he like the scheming smirk that spread over Vegeta's face.

"Your son will stay here on this planet while you travel to Namek with your brother," Vegeta announced, looking back up at Goku with a smug look. "I will be listening to these communication devices this woman made. You do as you say, and all will be well. You don't do as you say and interfere with bringing my son back, and neither of us will have a son anymore-"

In a flash, Goku was right in front of the prince, but Vegeta was faster. Goku barely had time to pull back the punch he'd been aiming for Vegeta's jaw, when the prince reappeared right behind Gohan. Goku spun back towards him, his jaw tight with hot fury when Vegeta just laughed.

"What's the matter, Kakarot? A step too slow?" Vegeta taunted, putting his hands casually on Gohan's shoulders from behind. The small boy was trying to look unfazed, but when he saw the looks his father and uncle were both wearing, sweat broke out on his back as he gulped.

"Vegeta, let him go," Goku ordered, trying hard to restrain himself. He was fast, but not fast enough. He had no way of knowing if Vegeta would hurt his son if he made a move. His fists were tightly clenched, and Raditz stepped closer when he felt his power unconsciously start to rise.

"I'm not even doing anything to him. Nor would I ever do anything to him. I'm fantastic with children," Vegeta innocently responded. His grip gently tightened on Gohan's shoulders, making the boy tense with anticipation and discomfort.

"If you're that worried about it, you could just come with us. You don't have to do this," Goku barely managed to get out through his grit teeth.

Instead of responding, Vegeta briefly glanced over at Bulma, who was warily watching the scene unfolding. She looked like she was ready to run for her life on the drop of a dime if things turned bad and the Saiyans started fighting. Goku followed his line of sight, and his features softened in realization.

"You want to be here when Trunks is revived. And if we can only bring Piccolo back, then you want to be here to get the Dragon Balls with Bulma to revive him," Goku reasoned out loud.

Vegeta blinked once, before his temper snapped and he snarled, "My reasons are mine, fool. I don't have to explain what I do to anybody. It's simple, Kakarot. My son lives, or no one's son on this fucking planet lives."

"I already told you, we're going to get this done," Goku growled. "You _have_ to trust us."

"I trust no one," Vegeta growled back.

They fell into another tense silence. Gohan was trying not to squirm out of Vegeta's hard grip on his shoulders, which was becoming increasingly more painful as each moment slipped by. Goku tried getting a read on the prince, but it was difficult. Not to mention, it was hard to stay unbiased when his young son was blatantly being used as some kind of hostage. He wasn't afraid of fighting Vegeta, but he was wary of the tactics the prince would use, especially with Gohan there in the middle of it.

Sensing his indecision, Vegeta roughly threw Gohan away from him, forcing the boy to crash into the grass. Gohan immediately scrambled up to his feet and ran over to stand next to his father.

"The boy stays here. You just do as you say you will, Kakarot, and the boy will be fine."

Goku was shaking his head, unwilling to be parted from his son, when Gohan tugged on his pants, drawing his attention.

"It's okay, Dad. I can stay here," Gohan whispered.

His father shifted uncomfortably as his eyebrows drew together. "What about wishing Piccolo back?" he quietly asked.

"You'll wish him back, I know you will," Gohan confidently said. "Besides, if I'm here, then I can see him as soon as he's wished back. We'll be okay here."

"It's settled then," Vegeta announced. "Since you and your brother are both idiots, Kakarot, you'll both have to go to ensure this gets done. The rest of us will wait here. Now stop wasting time. Get on with it."

Goku and Raditz exchanged another look, and with Raditz silently reassuring his younger brother that going along with Vegeta's plan would be the best course of action, Goku gave a conceding nod. "Alright. But I'll be checking in often."

"You're smarter than you look," Vegeta said with a smirk. He watched with avid interest as the two Saiyans climbed into their space pods. Bulma gave everything a last look, doing her best to ignore the prince who was watching every last detail. She shook her head when she checked the fuel in Goku's space pod one last time.

"I told you," she whispered to him.

"Yeah," Goku forced a quiet laugh. "But he's just doing what he thinks is best."

"He's insane," Bulma mumbled under her breath.

"Gotta show him trust eventually." Goku paused, before leaning closer to her and whispering, "Hey, keep an eye on Gohan for me, will you? I don't want Vegeta baiting him into a fight."

"I will."

She finally took a step back as Gohan approached his father to say goodbye. The heiress was so preoccupied with watching them, that she didn't feel Vegeta standing right behind her. The prince cocked his head to one side, observing father and son while they had a last exchange.

"I've never claimed to be sane, female," he gruffly said, startling Bulma as she jumped. Awkwardly, she took a few quick steps away from him, making Vegeta flash her a satisfied smirk over her clear discomfort near him. "But I can't kill you and then wish my son back to life. Something tells me he wouldn't be very happy if I did that."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Bulma shot at him, unwilling to be cowed by the Saiyan. She missed the flash of amusement on his face at her outburst. "Is that your cryptic way of telling me that I'm safe from you or something?"

Slowly, Vegeta came closer to her, circling her. He paused when he was right behind her, and whispered threateningly in her ear, " _No one_ is safe from me, woman. Least of all you. I suggest you remember that."

Bulma wasn't quite able to stop the small shudder of fear that ran down her back, but the prince was already off in front of Raditz' space pod while they also had some last words. She glared daggers into his back for a moment, before thanking the heavens above that it would only take two days for the space pods to reach Namek.

They were going to be a very long two days.

* * *

The first day passed without incident. After Goku and Raditz departed, Vegeta departed as well, going somewhere else on the planet and keeping his ki down so Gohan couldn't track him. The boy decided to stay with Bulma and help her, since his mother thought he was off planet anyways. Though Gohan didn't say anything, he wasn't comfortable with how Vegeta talked to Bulma. Though he had no hope of beating Vegeta in a fight, at least he stood a much better chance than Bulma did.

Gohan was sitting crosslegged on the floor of a makeshift lab, watching Bulma as she sat inside the space pod that should have been his. She looked focused as she altered the controls, and though she tried to keep her words under her breath, his sensitive hearing could pick up her occasional cursing. While his parents never cursed around him, Raditz did without hesitation, uncaring of his nephew's age. He was used to it by now.

"Do you think they made it to Namek yet?" he finally ventured.

"We talked to your dad and your uncle a few hours ago, Gohan. They still have a ways to go," Bulma absentmindedly answered.

Gohan cradled his chin in his hand, trying to peek into the space pod. "Do you think Vegeta is going to Namek after we wish Trunks back to life?"

"I have no idea," Bulma sighed. "All he said was he wanted access to the reserve fuel on this space pod. I didn't even know there _was_ reserve fuel, so it's just _tons_ of fun trying to figure out how to get access to it."

"You didn't do that for my dad and Raditz though."

"There was enough fuel in their pods to make the trip to Namek and back."

"So I guess Vegeta's going far away?"

"Man, I sure hope so," Bulma grumbled under her breath.

"Maybe he has a home in space somewhere. He's a prince so I bet it's a big home."

Bulma stayed silent, though her mind was going back to the deep scars that marred Vegeta's back. All of that coupled with his violent and distrustful nature made her think he didn't have a home in space. At least, not a good one. For a brief second, she felt another wave of pity for the prince, but she forced the feeling away. Instead, she wondered exactly where he was going. It was clear he had no intention of staying on Earth long-term, if his order for her to repair the last remaining space pod was any indication.

Gohan was absently staring off into the distance, listening to the sounds of sirens as the Earthlings tried to repair the massive damage done to their planet, when he caught sight of something in the sky. He barely had enough time to scramble up to his feet before the glass window practically exploded, startling him and Bulma both.

By the time Bulma got out of the space pod to see what the hell was going on, Vegeta was already standing in the room with them. The prince was wearing a cold look in his eyes, but it was the blood on his armor that was drawing the horrified attention of both Gohan and Bulma.

"I was hungry, so I went hunting some of the pathetic animals on this planet. The deal has not been broken," Vegeta sneered, irritated by the looks on their faces. "Rest assured, if people are going to die by my hand, I will start with one of you."

"Yeah, _that's_ reassuring," Bulma whispered, looking over the blood again. She had no way of knowing if he was telling the truth, and she didn't want to dwell on it. "Thanks for breaking my window, by the way. With all the other damage to my home, I really appreciated that extra touch," she added sarcastically.

"My pleasure. Perhaps next time I could break your neck too."

Gohan awkwardly cleared his throat, and kindly volunteered, "Hey Vegeta, if you're ever hungry, I can get some food for you. You don't always have to hunt if you don't want to."

Vegeta shifted his gaze to Gohan, and he snorted in disgust. "A true Saiyan lives for the hunt. You wouldn't know anything about that, half-breed."

"Look, did you want anything, or are you just here to bully a little kid?" Bulma angrily interrupted. "Because if you don't mind, I was busy trying to figure out how to access the reserve fuel on this space pod. I figure the sooner I get that done, the sooner you can leave for good."

"I need my scouter," the prince responded, turning his intimidating gaze back towards the woman in the room. "You have it, so get it for me immediately."

"Why in the hell would _I_ have your damn scouter? I've never even seen you wear a scouter-"

"Raditz' green scouter!" Vegeta barked in agitation. "His scouter is actually mine, and I want it back, _now._ Don't _make_ me tell you again, female," he snarled in warning as white ki snapped up between his fingers in his rising anger.

"Alright, alright," Bulma conceded, not missing the sparks of light in his hand. "I didn't know it was yours, okay? It's in the other lab. I'll get it for you."

"That's better," Vegeta harshly snapped. He clenched his fist and the light disappeared, to Bulma and Gohan's relief. The two exchanged a wary glance before Bulma turned around and headed out. Vegeta walked after her, and gave Gohan a pointed look when the boy started to follow him. Gohan stopped right where he was, letting the adults leave.

A few moments later, Bulma was digging through a box for the discarded scouter. It took a little more time than she would have liked, but she finally found it. She inspected it and turned it on just to make sure, but it seemed to be working fine.

"Okay, here," she said, turning back around. "It looks like it's running…"

Her voice trailed off when she realized she was alone in the lab. Bulma blinked, before stepping back out into the hallway. She glanced back down towards the lab with the space pod, and saw Gohan peeking out. The little boy pointed, and she looked the other way. Sure enough, Vegeta was down at the opposite end of the hallway.

Vegeta was standing outside of the door to the room where his son's body was. He was peering in through the small glass rectangle. He had known Trunks' body was there, but it was only now that he decided to take a look for himself. The woman had cleaned his body of the blood and covered the fatal wound on his chest, but that didn't rid the images from Vegeta's mind. Mixed emotions that he couldn't identify ran through him, and for the moment, he completely forgot about what he was planning to do. All he could think of was that he missed his son, and it hadn't even been that long since he had died. How the hell was it going to feel when the boy went back to his proper timeline? He had no idea how time travel worked. Would he ever see him again?

"Hey. I got you your scouter," Bulma softly said when Vegeta didn't acknowledge her presence. She was right next to him, studying his profile intently. The prince looked over at her, his eyes lowering to the scouter in her hands. Bulma was braced for more of his morbid threats or borderline sadistic sarcasm, but to her surprise, Vegeta only offered a nod of acceptance before taking the scouter from her hands. He then turned his attention forward again, falling deep into thought again.

The rigid and hard edge to his features didn't seem so rigid and hard now, with the way he was staring into the room at his son. It was still nearly impossible to get a read on him, but there was a hint of emotion in his eyes that he couldn't quite hide. For the first time, Bulma didn't see him as a heinous cold-blooded monster. In this moment, he was just a father who cared about his son.

She studied him for a few moments longer, before looking forward and following his line of sight.

"Do you want to go in?"

Vegeta looked back at her, and they made eye contact. His eyebrows drew together in a mixture of distrust and confusion. There was a thick tension in the air as they both studied each other's eyes for a moment. Two strangers who were complete opposites, from completely different worlds, destined to be lovers and parents. Neither said anything as they each really took the other in for the first time, but the moment was fleeting. Vegeta's features regained their harsh edge before he looked away first, raising up the scouter and slipping it on.

"Get back to work on that space pod," he ordered in cold detachment. Without waiting for a response or a look back, he turned around and walked away. Bulma released a deep breath, hearing another window shatter.

"Figures," she mumbled, shaking her head as she headed back towards her lab.

She was already off Vegeta's mind when he climbed out of another window to stand outside. He had bigger things to plan as he activated his scouter. The prince put in some old familiar coordinates and watched as the scouter tried making a connection. He waited five seconds, then ten, then thirty, before cursing heatedly in an alien language. His scouter hadn't been used in some time, and with the woman constantly opening and looking at it, his immediate conclusion was that she had damaged the communication system.

Vegeta was just reaching up to take off the scouter when it beeped, and the live transmission was picked up.

"…Vegeta?" a wary voice answered.

"Did you miss me?"

"This can't be…you're not supposed to be…"

"Not supposed to be alive?" Vegeta laughed. "Such little faith in me, Cui."

"Where is Frieza? We've been trying to contact him and Cooler, and we're not getting through-"

"They're both dead." The prince paused to hear a reaction, but when all he got was silence, he arrogantly added, "I killed Frieza myself."

"You lie," Cui hissed. "You're not strong enough-"

"You don't have to believe me. But you know damn well what's going to happen without the Cold family to run things. Once word gets out, the servant planets will rise up and rebel against the surviving soldiers in the empire. Someone will be foolish enough to try to rule and gain control, and soldiers will take sides, making your deaths come even faster. In essence, I'm talking to a dead man."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because, I gave serious thought into killing you all myself. But I've decided not to, since you could still be useful. So if you want to live, you'll do exactly as I say…"

* * *

"We have six Dragon Balls now. Everyone here is so nice! Raditz is tracking down the seventh one right now. I'm flying to see the eldest Namek so I can get the pass—oh crap, did I already come this way? Everything here looks the same-"

"Goku," Bulma interrupted, turning up the volume on her end. "You're going to see the eldest Namek for what?"

"Well, we can't use these Dragon Balls until we have a password."

"A password? Seriously?"

"Yeah, that's what they told us. Oh, and guess what? We get three wishes instead of one!"

"Really? That's great!" Bulma brightly responded, smiling her first genuine smile in a long time.

"Yeah, so I was thinking we could wish Piccolo and Trunks back to life. I don't know about the third wish though."

"We'll think of something, don't worry about it."

"Okay. How's Gohan doing?"

"Oh…um, he's good. No, he's great," Bulma said, forcing a laugh. "Alright, well, get in touch when you're ready to make a wish! Talk to you then!"

Bulma then cut off the communication before Goku could respond, before sliding her headset off. She took a deep breath, hoping that the Saiyans on Namek could get things done fast. Things had taken longer than she thought, due to them getting derailed on an imposter Namek planet. Five long days had passed since their departure, and she felt like Vegeta was a ticking time bomb. Every day, the prince was growing more restless and paranoid that Goku and Raditz were secretly plotting something. While he hadn't put his hands on her, he had taken Gohan as his unofficial sparring partner two days ago to "pass the time". Their sessions were growing more violent each time, and she wasn't sure that he wouldn't "accidentally" kill the boy during one of them.

When she heard Vegeta's mocking laughter, Bulma looked outside. Gohan looked visibly exhausted as he sported a black eye and blood on his face. Vegeta was standing in front of him with a smirk on his face, arms crossed securely over his chest, a challenging look in his eyes.

 _What a bully,_ Bulma mused angrily, watching as Gohan tried in vain to fight back. Past attempts to make Vegeta stop had only resulted in him being harder on Gohan, and so like the genius she was, Bulma had come up with a new solution to force him to stop beating up on her best friend's son:

Catering.

Some time later, Vegeta stared at the massive spread of food in front of him with apprehension. Gohan was bruised and bandaged up, but that was doing nothing to stop him from inhaling as much food as he could. Vegeta watched him and then suspiciously poked at some of the chicken. It smelled damn good, but he still didn't trust the woman not to have slipped something into it.

Bulma knew exactly what he was thinking, and she rolled her eyes. This was less of a peace offering and more of her running out of options on how to stop him from fighting with Gohan, since she didn't trust him not to kill the boy. From her experiences with Goku, Gohan, and Raditz, she knew for a fact that Vegeta was hungry. Likely starving if Raditz' first meal on Earth had been any indication. But still, he sniffed, poked, and prodded, too stubborn to try anything.

"Oh, would you just eat the damn food already?" Bulma finally snapped, startling Vegeta and Gohan both as they looked over at her. "I didn't just order all this for Gohan, you know! Not a lot of people are catering meal sizes this big with most of West City destroyed-!"

Bulma's ranting ended with a shriek when part of the wall next to her exploded. She instinctively ducked and covered her head, and when all the debris settled, glanced up to see Vegeta pointing a finger in her direction.

"Remember who you're fucking talking to, wench. I'll eat when I choose and not a moment sooner," Vegeta sneered. His eyes shifted over to Gohan, who was scowling at him. "What the hell are you looking at, brat?" he snapped.

"Nothing," Gohan quietly answered, lowering his eyes back to his food. Before he could finish his current plate, it was swiped by Vegeta. The prince sniffed it and then figured that the woman wouldn't dare poison the boy. He ventured a small taste.

Five minutes later, Bulma and Gohan were both staring at Vegeta while he ate like he had never had a decent meal in his life. The two exchanged a look of surprise, but before either of them could do anything else, Bulma's headset cackled to life.

Bulma immediately got up to her feet, turning it on. "Hello?"

"Hey, Bulma?"

"Hey Goku! How are things going?" Bulma asked in relief. She turned away from Vegeta and Gohan, who were both giving her their full attention. "It's what? What's huge? You're breaking up! The dragon is huge? You've already summoned the dragon, that's fantastic!"

Vegeta was at her side in a heartbeat. Without any tact, he yanked the headset off her head, making her yelp when her hair got caught in it. He turned away as he slipped it on, ignoring Bulma cursing.

"Kakarot? What is going on? Tell me, now!"

"Vegeta, we've summoned the dragon. We're ready to start making our wishes," Goku informed him enthusiastically, briefly forgetting his resentment towards Vegeta for keeping Gohan on Earth. The chance to start fixing some damage had finally arrived, and he was eager to start.

"Wishes?" Vegeta asked in surprise. "I thought it was only one-"

He snarled in surprise when Bulma roughly yanked the headset off him. Spinning towards her, he was instinctively pulling his hand back to strike her down, but Bulma quickly activated a speaker on the headset.

"-saying we get three wishes!" Goku's voice came through. Vegeta gave Bulma a cold glare which she ignored as Gohan ran up to them to hear better.

"Dad, you made it!" he excitedly shouted.

"I sure did. And we're about to wish Piccolo back right now."

"Then you're going to wish Trunks back," Vegeta ordered.

"Then we're going to wish Trunks back," Goku affirmed.

Vegeta, Bulma, and Gohan all leaned in closer as they heard someone begin speaking in the background, in a language none of them understood. As the words went on, more and more static started being heard.

"Damn woman, can't you build anything right?" Vegeta angrily demanded.

"The dragon is granting a wish, what do you expect?" Bulma shot back.

The prince went to respond, but then he and Gohan both suddenly looked off towards the distance. They both felt it right away. A strong power level that could only belong to one being.

"THAT'S PICCOLO!" Gohan screamed in joy. Before Vegeta or Bulma could even get out a word, the boy's aura ruptured around him, and then he took off into the sky, flying straight towards the power level he was sensing.

"So, it really does work," Vegeta whispered under his breath. He glanced back towards the building, the building Bulma was already heading into. The heiress paused and looked back at him, and they made eye contact.

"Well? What the hell are you waiting for! Do you want to see your son or not!" she yelled at him. Vegeta's upper lip curled back threateningly, but now wasn't the time. Trunks was going to finally be wished back, and that was all that mattered. Without a word, he followed her inside. Wishing someone back from the dead was something he had to see, especially when that someone was his son.

"Dende's wishing Trunks back now," Goku's voice came over through the static on Bulma's headset right as Bulma and Vegeta both went into the room where Trunks' body was.

"Okay," Bulma eagerly replied. Vegeta stopped a good five feet away, watching as Bulma got closer to him. She covered Trunks' hand gently with her own, and then they both waited.

Trunks' pale skin gained its color back first, and Vegeta took a step closer when he felt a brief flicker of his ki. He and Bulma were both startled when Trunks suddenly sat straight up, gasping in a lungful of air while he blinked rapidly. The Saiyan hybrid glanced around, half-expecting to still be in the middle of a battlefield. He looked down and removed the bandages on his chest, and the only sign of the fatal ki blast was a faint scar. Trunks looked up and his eyes settled on his mother, who instantly wrapped him in a tight hug.

"Trunks, thank goodness, you're back! How do you feel? Are you okay?" Bulma asked worriedly, pulling back and examining him closely.

"Uh, yeah, I think so. I feel kinda weird but I think I'm fine," Trunks said, blinking a few times in surprise. He gingerly shifted over, and then stood up, looking down at his hands briefly. When he looked up, he finally made eye contact with Vegeta. He offered him a smile.

Vegeta offered him a nod of acknowledgement, fighting the smile creeping on his own face. Without a word, he closed his eyes and projected to Trunks everything he had missed, from his emotional reaction to Trunks' death, to the moment he entered the room they were now standing in. He didn't spare a single detail, showing it all from his perspective. Trunks stood, stunned, as the images raced through his mind. Vegeta finally opened his eyes again, closing out of the projection.

"Whoa," Trunks whispered, overwhelmed by everything he had seen. He almost felt like sitting down again. He settled for leaning back against the examination table while he shook his head. "I missed a lot."

"Just a thing or two."

Trunks looked back up. "You ascended."

"Not how I wanted, but I did."

Trunks thought of what to say, but he didn't have the right words. His whole life he had missed a father he had never known, craving respect and acceptance from a man who could never show up to give it to him. Until now. It was all he ever wanted, even if he had gone through hell to get there. Father and son shared a silent moment of mutual respect and understanding, a moment that was broken by Vegeta snorting and crossing his arms over his chest as he looked away.

"Told you to always watch your back, kid. You wouldn't have died if you had."

"Yeah," Trunks laughed a little. "I have to work on that, I guess."

"Hey guys, we still have a last wish," Goku's voice came through on the headset in Bulma's hands, snapping her attention from the two men in the room with her.

"Oh, right. Well, I'm not sure. What do you think, Trunks?" Bulma asked, glancing back towards her son. "Do you think we could try to find your broken capsule? Or maybe the antidote for Goku?"

"I need to go back to my timeline," Trunks immediately answered as he straightened. "You made a prototype of the time machine in my timeline. If we can fix that, then I can come back and bring Goku's antidote back like I was originally supposed to."

"There's one problem with that," Vegeta cut in, looking at his son intensely. "You don't know if the female will still be alive when you go back. If she's not, then you won't ever time travel again."

Trunks frowned and looked away, not wanting to think about that. "I don't know. I'll figure it out either way. Doesn't matter how long it takes. I'll come back."

"Are you sure this is what you want, Trunks?" Bulma pressed. "What if you can't come back to this timeline, and you can only go back to the past from _your_ timeline?"

"I'm sorry, that's just a risk I'm going to have to take."

"So are we going to wish Trunks back to his timeline then or what? The dragon says he can do it but you have to make up your damn minds," Raditz cut in through the headset. "This dragon is getting impatient."

"Alright," Trunks said, a hard look of determination coming over his features. "I'm going back."

"Okay, just give us ONE minute before you make that wish. Buy us a little time!" Bulma ordered into the headset. She then handed it to Trunks, and promptly raced out of the room while yelling, "You need your sword! And I'm getting you a clean Capsule Corp shirt!"

Vegeta kept his eyes on the headset, vaguely listening to Goku and Raditz in their lame attempts to stall the Namekian dragon. Trunks was the one who broke the silence first, covering the headset microphone with one hand.

"So I guess I'm not the only one who is leaving," Trunks said, disappointment ringing loud and clear.

His father looked back up at him. "Ruling is what I was meant to do."

"No, it's not. You're supposed to be here. This is your fight."

"It's not. This isn't my home."

"But it's _my_ home."

Vegeta scowled and looked away. "I don't know what you want me to say, Trunks."

Suddenly, Trunks was right in front of him. Vegeta had no choice but to look him right in the eye. The boy was getting pissed, and Vegeta felt oddly uncomfortable with that. Trunks was leaving, and he didn't want to have him leaving while angry with him.

"You know why I tried so hard not to tell you the truth? Because I knew this is what you would do. If you didn't know who I was, or who Bulma was going to be in your life, you wouldn't be going anywhere. You're avoiding what you would've done, running away from it-"

"It's not that," Vegeta snapped. "You don't understand. I have a responsibility-"

"To _me_ ," Trunks roughly interrupted, poking his father in the chest. "You're my father and you have a responsibility to _me_. I've never asked you for anything, and I swear that I never will again. But I need you to do this for me. Go into space and rule, I don't care, but if you give a damn about me then please, come back and finish what you started in my timeline. If not for yourself, then for me."

Vegeta and Trunks stared each other down for a few tense seconds, neither willing to budge. Trunks felt a headache coming on from his stress. He had the opportunity to go home, but if his father didn't help against the androids, then they weren't going to win. And leaving without knowing one way or the other would kill him. He felt his frustration with Vegeta rising when the silence stretched on, and he was about to explode and start ranting in his father's face out of desperation, when Vegeta broke their eye contact.

"Alright," the prince relented. "I'll come back and I'll take care of the androids myself."

His son blinked as anger washed away, with hope replacing it. "Really?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes a little. "You heard what I said, Trunks. I'll be here."

Trunks smiled. "Thank you."

"You won't be born though. That female is absolutely insufferable," Vegeta grumbled.

"Can't have it all, I guess."

"Hn."

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! It just took a while to find a clean shirt that is in your size! At least, I think it's in your size," Bulma said in a rushed breath, holding a white t-shirt out as though inspecting its size. She went right up to Trunks and pressed the shirt up against his shoulders, looking it over. "Yeah, this should fit, I think. Okay, and here's your sword. I had it cleaned because there was so much blood on it, including your father's blood, and who knows what kind of diseases he has," she snidely added, purposely ignoring the third person in the room.

Vegeta growled low in his throat, his ki beginning to rise. Trunks looked anxiously back and forth between his parents while he tugged the white Capsule Corp t-shirt on. While in the afterlife, he had hoped they could come to a mutual understanding. It looked to him like it was wishful thinking.

"Well, I think that's everything," Trunks finally said, slinging his sword holster over his shoulder. Bulma passed him a short black hair band in exchange for the headset, watching him swiftly tie his lavender hair back into a ponytail. "And uh, please try not to kill each other. I'd like to see you both again when I come back."

"Don't worry about us, you just be careful," Bulma told him, kissing his cheek.

Trunks nodded, looking back at Vegeta. "Father."

The prince raised two fingers in a silent salute, and Trunks returned the gesture as Vegeta's promise was silently sealed.

Then, just like that, Trunks was gone.

* * *

Vegeta slowly opened his eyes several days later, looking through the gas in his space pod. The lights were flashing on his green scouter, signaling arrival to the planet of his choice, a planet light years away from Earth.

A moment later, and the space pod latch opened up. Vegeta stepped out, and was greeted by Cui. Behind Cui stood a row of soldiers, all wearing the standard scouter and armor combination. The prince barely gave them a glance, before turning and walking over towards the base, with all of them following closely behind him. As he did, he disactivated his scouter, and then raised his ki until it shattered everyone's scouters behind him. Vegeta heard the shocked gasps, and he smirked in satisfaction. There was something so rewarding about having Frieza's men fearing him now. That was part of the reason he was sparing their lives, for the time being. In a few days time, he would begin "weeding out" longtime enemies and rivals as he built his forces from the ground up. But until then, he would enjoy their terror. Especially Cui's.

"You gathered everyone as I asked, Cui?"

"Y-yes, Vegeta," Cui weakly answered, still floored by the six-digit reading Vegeta had effortlessly registered on his scouter.

"That's _Lord Vegeta_ to you," came the threatening reply.

"Yes, Lord Vegeta."

"Better," the prince gruffly replied as he stepped inside the base.

There were two young boys there at the entrance waiting for him, barely older than Gohan. They had a brand new uniform set for him to wear. Vegeta paused and looked them over, before turning his now ice-cold glare to Cui.

"I said no children. I thought I was clear."

"Apologies, Lord Vegeta. I thought I had gotten rid of all of them."

Vegeta's glare was unwavering, and Cui had to fight not to shrink back. In some ways, he was more afraid of Vegeta now than he had been of Frieza before. Frieza had been largely indifferent to him and his existence, barely even knowing his name. But he and Vegeta had bad blood that ran back to when they were boys. That had been fine with him when their power difference was negligible. But now, he had a feeling he wouldn't be living very long.

Finally, Vegeta shifted his gaze to one of the men behind Cui. "You. I don't know your name, nor do I care to know it. Send these two brats back to their true planets. If it doesn't exist anymore, send them to a friendly planet. Just get them the hell out of my sight, _now_."

"Yes, Lord Vegeta," the soldier obediently said with a nod. Vegeta snatched up his new uniform and new set of armor from the boys, before gesturing with his head for them to leave.

As soon as they did, Vegeta spun around and violently shoved Cui against the wall, gripping him by the throat. He leaned in close to his old rival's face as he sneered, "I already told you. Frieza might have used child soldiers, but I have no use for them. I'm no one's trainer or guardian. I want an army of men already experienced in battle. If I see one more child wearing armor, I will have your head on a stick and put it on display. Am I clear?"

"Yes," Cui gasped, struggling to breathe.

" _Am I clear?"_

"Yes!"

Vegeta released him, watching with expressionless eyes as Cui slid down the wall, coughing and wheezing for air. He then gestured for all of them to leave.

"Go. You know what to do," he ordered.

The soldiers all nodded and left, with Cui scrambling up and following after them. Left alone for the time being, Vegeta started to get undressed right where he was. He peeled off a glove, and where he used to carry the old broken piece of his armor, he now had a small piece of white paper. Slowly unfolding it, he read the blue ink that showcased Bulma's handwriting. It had the date that the androids would arrive on Earth. Underneath that, he had written the translation, with some assistance from Raditz, into time units he could understand. He stared at the paper for a long time, his thoughts going to his son as he wondered how things were going for him. He missed the kid more than he could ever articulate.

But there was no time to dwell though. Tucking the small paper into his new set of gloves, a reminder of a promise he was fully intending to keep, Vegeta turned his attention to the business at hand. He slipped on a brand new set of white armor, complete with a crimson cape attached to it. Adjusting his scouter, he then left towards the hundreds of ki signatures he was sensing outside. The remaining soldiers of the Cold empire were gathered and waiting.

It was time they found out just who their new leader was.

* * *

Trunks was enveloped in blinding white light, forcing him to stagger backwards. As soon as it came, it was gone. Disoriented, he shook the dizziness away. He looked around and saw that his parents were gone. It was dark, and for a moment, his stomach tied up in knots as he had the panicked thought that he was again in the wrong time. He was in some kind of barren room that looked abandoned. His blue eyes finally focused and he jogged over to the only door he could see.

When he opened it, he immediately recognized the hallway he was in. He was home. This was Capsule Corp., but at the time, it wasn't. These were the downstairs labs that his mother had tried her best to keep intact and updated, but they looked abandoned.

"Mom?" Trunks worriedly called out. He reached up behind him, drawing out his sword as he slowly stepped out of the room. "Mom!" he called out, louder this time.

Trunks tried sensing her low ki, but he couldn't sense anything. Panic started rising up until it was right in his throat, making him feel sick. Was he too late? He couldn't have been. Trunks started running, desperately searching for Bulma. Finally, he found a staircase and raced upstairs.

As soon as he opened the door, though, there was an enormous explosion. Before he could do anything about it, it forced Trunks backwards as he tumbled down the stairs. He managed to stop halfway, wincing as his sword continued flying past him down the stairs. Trunks was awkwardly lying upside down on the stairs, but he slowly pulled himself up.

Only to see an enormous metallic monster standing at the doorway, blocking his only exit. Trunks' eyes widened in shock. That wasn't an android. What the hell was it?

Right as he was about to raise his hand and fire an attack, the metallic monster's head slowly lifted up, and then flipped off. A very familiar wave of hair appeared as Bulma poked her head out.

"Trunks…?" she whispered, looking down at him. Trunks turned around and regained his balance on the stairs, peering up at his mother as they shared the same look of shock.

"Mom?"

"Oh my god! TRUNKS!" Bulma screamed. In seconds, the enormous robotic body of armor around her disappeared, a capsule in its place. She forgot all about it as she went downstairs while Trunks ran upstairs, and the two met in a tight hug somewhere in the middle. Bulma was already in tears before she had even reached him. "Oh Trunks! I thought something bad had happened to you!"

"It's okay. I'm here, and I'm alive. Though you almost killed me just now, I'm alright," Trunks laughed.

"Oh honey, I'm sorry! I just thought-"

"It's alright. You were defending yourself. Not bad, might I add."

"Well, you know me," Bulma laughed, finally letting him go. She looked him over as she gently rubbed his shoulders. "Wow. Look at you, son. You've changed. You've grown so much."

"Thanks," Trunks mumbled, frowning as he looked at his mother. She looked like she had aged ten years since he'd last seen her. There were new, worried wrinkles, and white hair that hadn't been there before. A wave of guilt over how much she had probably stressed over him rushed up, and Trunks hugged her tightly again. "I swear, I tried to come back sooner-"

"It was my fault. The time was wrong. I didn't double check it. I'm so sorry."

"Yeah, well, I fucked things up-"

"Trunks," Bulma blinked in surprise. "Since when do you curse in front of me?"

"Oh, sorry. Dad and I spent a lot of time together. A _lot_ of time."

"Clearly," Bulma laughed a little. "Come on. Let's go upstairs. You have to tell me everything."

And he did. It took a while for him to tell her the entire story. Throughout the whole time, Bulma made them tea, and then sat down and listened. She said nothing, but he saw how tight her grip was on her tea mug. Even when he glossed over the worst details, he could tell that she knew the truth. When he was done, Bulma told her story of what had happened in his absence. There weren't many humans left on the planet, and she was hardly ever at Capsule Corp anymore except to cleverly store supplies with the capsules. The androids were hunting for her to stop her from developing weapons for the surviving humans. She had only come in that day to retrieve some food capsules.

"Well," Trunks finally said when she had finished. "I think I can solve your problem. I'm much stronger than I was before I left. I can take them out now, no problem."

"I think I can solve your problem too. We have more of that heart virus antidote for Goku. The time machine though…" Bulma sighed, raising the mug of tea for a drink.

"Do you still have the first prototype?" Trunks asked hopefully.

"I do, but it needs a lot of work. I already know what needs to be done, but I need supplies and time. It might take me about six months to really get it to a point where we could test it, and that's best case scenario."

"That's fine. Do you know if I'll go back to the timeline I just left? Or if I'll go back to the past for _this_ timeline? This time travel stuff is confusing."

"I have no idea, sweetie. I'm sorry."

"That's alright. Just kinda want to see my dad again, that's all."

"Vegeta was so difficult when we first met, and he had already tempered some. I can't even imagine what that was like for you, meeting him before he came to Earth."

Trunks nodded slowly, looking down into his tea, a faint smile on his face. "Yeah, he was kind of intense. Almost killed me a couple times. It's alright though. I got to really know him, and it was worth it."

"I'm glad."

Trunks hesitated, swirling his tea a little, before asking, "Do you think, based on what I told you, that you would've given my dad a chance still?"

Bulma seriously thought about it, but then she shook her head. "I can't say, Trunks. Everything sounds so different. I don't know if I could've looked past all of that."

"Yeah."

"Hey, it's okay. At least you got to know your father."

Trunks smiled a little, and then stood up. "Well, I think I'm long overdue for this fight. Will you be alright here?"

"I'll be okay. I'll start working on repairing that prototype when you come back. Be careful, okay?"

"I will," Trunks answered, already heading outside.

He adjusted his sword in his holster and looked off into the distance, taking in the increased damage to his home city. If it was a wreck before, it was hopelessly destroyed now. It would take years to rebuild, but it was time to start. He had spent well over two years trying to save the past, and he would get back to that soon.

But for now, it was time to start saving the present.


	23. One Chance

When his vision cleared, Trunks hopped to the ground from his time machine. Warily looking around, he tried figuring out where he was this time. There was plenty of barren terrain near him, but finally, he spotted an old discarded water bottle wedged under a rock. For sure then, he was on Earth. Relieved, he finally relaxed a little bit. Trunks then encapsulated his time machine and almost gently put it inside of his leather jacket while he stretched out his senses to pick up someone to talk to.

It only took about ten seconds before he felt something. Turning around, his blue eyes narrowed as he stared off into the distance. He immediately pinpointed Gohan, and…Vegeta? He was already back? He wasn't sure that was a good sign. Trunks blinked in surprise, before focusing more. Krillin was there too. As were Piccolo, Yamcha, and Tien. There was no sign of Goku though, but that didn't stop him. Trunks drew out his sword and blasted into the air, flying straight towards them. When he felt all of the power levels slowly begin to drop, Trunks suspected the worst and flew faster.

Trunks came to a sudden stop when he felt two new power levels that were very familiar. His grip on his sword handle unconsciously tightened in anger and frustration. Refusing to accept the truth, he quietly descended to the ground and moved on foot with stealth that he had perfected with Vegeta's instruction. Ducking behind a ridge, Trunks peeked around and saw Vegeta quietly scaling a rock wall while suppressing his ki. Trailing him were Piccolo and Tien, with Gohan, Krillin, Bulma, and Yamcha at the bottom.

If that wasn't sign enough that he wasn't in the same timeline he had originally traveled to, the fact that he could sense a very powerful Frieza and King Cold up ahead was a dead giveaway. Trunks straightened and then squatted down, a miserable look of defeat on his face. His newly-cut lavender hair was hanging in his eyes, the weight of Goku's heart virus antidote heavy in his jacket.

This was the time he was always supposed to come back to. His mother had programmed this date again into the time machine, but Trunks had been praying he would go back to the timeline he'd left. Now he was here, and all he wanted to do was leave – just get back into the time machine and try again. Except that wouldn't work. That was another timeline in another piece of time and space, created by his interference, somewhere he couldn't reach anymore.

Though he hadn't wished for it, he had at least planned for this outcome. That's why he had _two_ vials of antidote in his jacket. And seeing that Piccolo was alive meant that the Dragon Balls were available…he would just sit tight and wait for Goku to arrive. Then he would inform him of the androids, give him one vial of the heart antidote, and share his unique predicament with the man who had become his friend in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Hopefully then, Goku would understand and help him make a wish to return to the other timeline. Even then, he had no idea if it would work. But it was worth a try.

The longer Trunks waited, though, the more anxious he became. Frieza was already here, and Goku was nowhere in sight. He checked his coordinates and his time, and then cursed a little. Goku had been the one to destroy Frieza, but if his information was right, he wasn't due to arrive for another couple of hours. Earth probably didn't have that time.

Trunks hesitated only a few seconds before he got back up. Someone had to take care of Frieza, and it looked like it had to be him.

After the hell he had gone through in the other timeline thanks to Frieza, he was going to enjoy this.

"Begin your search," Frieza ordered his men, his reconstructed tail whipping hard against the ground and leaving a crack in it. "I want you to find that Saiyan's friends, and then I want you to show them no mercy-"

The sound of rapid thuds behind him made Frieza pause. He looked behind him, and unconsciously gasped in surprise. All of his men that he'd brought along had been slaughtered in a heartbeat, their dismembered bodies on the ground in cold blood. But he hadn't felt or heard any movement. Stunned, Frieza looked over at his father, who looked equally bewildered.

"This isn't where I wanted to be, but now that I'm here, I'm going to take care of something I should've finished a long time ago, Frieza."

Frieza frantically looked around, taking a step back as he did. Was it the Saiyan he fought on Namek? No, it couldn't be. The voice wasn't the same. But who else would be speaking such bold words to him? Who else had the speed to execute all of his soldiers right under his nose?

" _Frieza_!" King Cold screamed in pain, drawing his son's attention immediately.

Frieza's eyes widened, and he had to blink several times to make sure he was not imagining things. But this was nothing but horrifying reality. That was _his_ father, ruler of the largest empire in existence, the powerful King Cold, helplessly sprawled out on his stomach on the dirt ground. And that was _not_ Goku who was keeping him pinned there with an immovable boot to the back of his head, along with a sword ruthlessly driven into his father's back like a stake to keep him in place.

When Trunks looked up and they made eye contact, Frieza went cold with fear. The boy's hair was a wavy gold, and those teal eyes were the same as Goku's. Frieza nearly stumbled backwards, unable to speak or make a move to help his father who was writhing in agony on the ground.

"Do you know what it's like to be forced to watch your father be beaten down right in front of you within an inch of his life, while you couldn't do a damn thing to stop it?" Trunks angrily demanded. Frieza took another step back, stuttering for words. That look in Trunks' teal eyes was darker, more murderous than the look Goku had after he killed his short bald friend on Namek. "Do you have any idea what it's like waiting for _days_ to see if your father will survive the worst beating of his life?"

"Who the hell are you?" Frieza finally demanded. Empowered after finding his voice, he growled and stepped forward, his tail cracking the ground. "You fool! You're going to pay-!"

"No. You and your father are going to pay. You both die, right here, right now," Trunks announced matter-of-factly. He roughly yanked his now-bloodied sword out of King Cold, earning a shout of pain from the lord.

That was all he had time to do before Frieza suddenly fired a powerful blast of red ki right at him, causing a massive explosion that could be seen and felt for miles, with Trunks right at the center of it. Not so far away, a group of warriors had to drop to the ground as the pressure wave from the blast struck them a moment later.

"Whoa! Seems like someone's started the party without us, you guys!" Krillin yelled, shielding his head from the flying debris.

"Must be my dad!" Gohan yelled back, shielding his eyes as he tried raising his head. "No one else would try to fight Frieza alone!"

"Shut up!" Vegeta snapped at both of them. "Whoever that is over there with Frieza and his father is stronger than Frieza and Kakarot combined, so drop it already!"

"Do you know who it is? Maybe it's someone who came with him from space?" Piccolo asked, briefly making eye contact with Vegeta. The prince shook his head.

"I don't know who could be that strong, but I know for sure it's not Kakarot-"

"If this is you guys trying to be quiet, I'd hate to see you all being loud," a joking voice cut in from behind all of them. All of the warriors spun around in surprise. Trunks was standing there, a hint of a smile on his face. His hair was lavender and his eyes were a clear blue again. There was no sword in his hand, but there was some blood smearing his jacket. He wiped it off casually.

"Don't worry. I'm not here to hurt any of you. I'm actually just here to talk to Goku, but he's not going to be here for a couple hours. So I figured I'd take care of Frieza for you guys. Turns out though, that I need a little help to finish him off for good. What do you guys say? Any of you up for it?"

He was met with suspicious silence while everyone exchanged glances. No one knew who this stranger was, but before anyone could voice otherwise, Trunks made eye contact with Vegeta and smirked.

"What about you?" Trunks asked, tilting his head a little and looking over his father's pink shirt. He had to resist the urge to laugh out loud. "You're Vegeta, aren't you? Prince of Saiyans?"

Everyone looked back at Vegeta, who had a look of wary distrust on his face. He clenched his fists instinctively, drawing back a little as he squared himself for battle.

"And you know this how?"

"Your reputation precedes you," Trunks said, his smirk spreading into a smile as he echoed the words Vegeta had used a long time ago. Vegeta's glare darkened at that response, but Trunks ignored it as he continued, "Well, you can help me out, or you can just stay here with the other Earthlings. Your call, Vegeta."

"Wait, who are-?" Vegeta started, but Trunks was already flying back over to Frieza's flagship. Vegeta was left stunned, blinking a few times as he tried figuring out what that had been about as everyone gathered closer to him.

"You don't know him, do you?" Piccolo deduced as he studied the prince carefully. Vegeta stayed silent, his mind racing. The way the boy talked to him, with such ease and familiarity, it was as though they had history. Had they met before? He slowly shook his head.

"No. At least, I don't remember him if we've met before," Vegeta reluctantly admitted.

"Guys, you feel that?" Gohan asked, looking to where Trunks had flown off to. "I can BARELY feel Frieza! I don't think that guy was lying!"

"Yeah, you're right!" Krillin chimed in. "That other guy he was with is already dead!"

"But that doesn't make sense," Tien added, frowning in thought as he suspiciously looked back towards Vegeta. "If this guy's already killed the other powerful alien Frieza came with, and he's already got Frieza down and weakened enough to kill him, then why does he need help?"

"More specifically, why does he need _Vegeta's_ help?" Yamcha demanded.

"Oh would you guys just knock it off! This isn't some big conspiracy!" Bulma snapped at both of them, before looking back at Vegeta and taking in the confused look on his face as he stared into the distance. She gestured towards the prince, "Look at him! It's obvious that Vegeta doesn't know who that guy is. So drop it, you insecure morons."

Yamcha huffed a little, embarrassed with her response, but Vegeta wasn't paying any of them any attention. He was rapidly replaying old missions in his mind, old conversations, trying to figure out where he might have met this boy before. He was so lost in his thoughts that he was visibly startled when Trunks mockingly yelled back at him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Don't tell me you're scared."

Vegeta grit his teeth angrily as his blue ki exploded brightly around him. Without further hesitation, he took off right after Trunks. Everyone else glanced at each other, but then Gohan took off without a word after them, just in case it was some kind of trap. Krillin and Piccolo immediately followed suit.

They all descended several moments later, wide-eyed at what they saw. Kind Cold was sprawled out on the ground in a pool of blood, obviously dead and in a gruesome way, with something that could have only been done with a sword. The explosion from Frieza's desperation blast had cleared all of the dead bodies of the mutilated soldiers, but there were still some traces of blood that could be seen by everyone. About forty yards away, Trunks was sitting casually on a rock. He had the bottom of his boot firmly on the handle of his sword – the sword that was currently impaling Frieza right in the chest. The tyrant was trying in vain to move, but the more he did, the more Trunks subtly pushed the sword further down.

Vegeta hesitated for a second, before eternal curiosity won. He was the only one who crossed the distance over to them. It was only when he was standing in front of Trunks and Frieza that he finally saw the true extent of the damage. Frieza's tail and his right leg had been sliced off completely, and his hands were shattered and destroyed. The tyrant looked positively incensed, shaking with his rage while he tried in vain to just get off the ground. But there was fear in his eyes, and Vegeta could barely believe it. Never in his life had he seen Frieza with that look in his eyes. The prince then glanced back at Trunks with suspicion as he wondered how a boy his age could have the power to strike fear into Frieza.

"I heard a story once," Trunks said, easily keeping Frieza pinned down while they both ignored his weak attempts to speak. "That you were the one destined to kill him. Is that true?"

It took a few moments before Vegeta responded. He shook his head, and his jaw set as he looked away. "It doesn't matter anymore. I had my chance, and I failed. You started this fight, so you deserve to finish it."

"He tortured my father almost his whole life. Hurt him right in front of me and I couldn't do a damn thing about it. In a different time and place, he managed to kill him. I would love to do this and end Frieza for good," Trunks admitted, a deep scowl on his face.

"Then do it. What the hell do you need from me? My fucking permission?" Vegeta sneered, making Trunks bite back a smile. This wasn't his father, but at the same time, it was. Trunks looked back down at Frieza, schooling his features into indifference as he shrugged.

"Nah, I don't need anything from you, Vegeta. I just thought maybe you would want the chance to kill him."

"Like I said. It's your fight, so it's your kill."

"What if I don't finish it? Then you'll have to step in."

"If you don't finish this, then you're a damn fool."

"Maybe so, but at least I'm not in a pink shirt."

Vegeta growled and opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, Trunks roughly pulled out his sword from Frieza's midsection. The tyrant seemed to sputter to life, struggling to raise his head, but before Vegeta could even register the motion, Trunks already had him pinned back down. The prince flinched back a little, his eyes wide when he saw Trunks' boot firmly lodged into Frieza's throat. The boy was applying brutal pressure, and they both heard things beginning to break underneath his boot. Trunks almost sneered in disgust down at Frieza. He would have given up everything he owned for another shot at the tyrant, the one who had killed him in a cheap shot from behind. But this version of Frieza wasn't as strong. In fact, this version was pathetic in comparison.

"Guess I'm a fool then," Trunks finally grumbled, extending his sword to Vegeta. The prince stared at the sword with an intensity that Trunks recognized all too well. He did want this. He wanted this more than he wanted to defeat Goku in battle. Vegeta looked up and made eye contact with Trunks, searching his eyes with fine-tuned scrutiny.

"Have we met before?"

"No."

Vegeta's eyes narrowed angrily. "Don't lie to me."

"I'm not. I've only heard of you. Anyone who has been in space for as long as I have, has heard of you."

"Hn."

Vegeta frowned in distrust, but he seemed to accept that. After some time of awkward silence between them, Trunks sighed as he silently chastised himself. He had wanted to provide his father with closure in this timeline, a small bit of the closure he had experienced in the altered timeline. But he was just being foolish. He had been so careful not to chance things in the past, and now here he was. Being reckless and changing things already in this new timeline before Goku had even shown up.

"Alright, look," Trunks conceded. "I shouldn't have asked you to do this. I wasn't thinking clearly. I'll just finish Frieza myself-"

"I got it now, imbecile," Vegeta snapped, snatching the sword out of his son's hand. "Stand aside."

Trunks leaned away, though he kept his boot firmly on Frieza's throat to hold him in place. The tyrant was still writhing in pain, unable to move from Trunks' attack through his midsection. Vegeta flipped the sword over, grabbed it by the handle, and then aimed it down right over Frieza's face. Both he and Trunks were uncaring as Frieza attempted to beg for mercy through a mouth full of blood. As Vegeta pulled the sword up, Trunks hoped this small change wouldn't alter things too much in this timeline.

For once, he didn't need to worry.

* * *

Meanwhile, in another wrinkle of space and time, Bulma was at her computer, typing in a mad rush while someone very impatient was waiting on the other end of her headset.

"Well?" the rough voice angrily demanded.

"Oh, would you just wait for once in your life, Mr. Lord of the Universe?" Bulma snapped. "I almost have it!"

"Hurry the hell up, woman, I don't have time for your bullshit right now-"

"Okay, I got it, I got it. Now, let's see. If you leave within the next 18 hours, you'll get here on time. Trunks said the androids would be here a week from today at 10am-"

"I know what the boy said. I was _there_ when he said it," Vegeta sneered. He exhaled slowly, making static ruffle up on her end. There was silence for about ten seconds, before he hesitantly asked, "Has Trunks…?"

"No. He hasn't come back yet," Bulma quietly answered, her eyes drifting to the time and date on her laptop. "But I'll get in touch with you when he does-"

"18 hours, correct?"

"Yeah, 18 hours should be okay-"

With that, Vegeta abruptly ended the connection. Bulma angrily pulled off the headset, letting it drop on her desk. She sighed, brushing some blue bangs out of her face while she tried not to think about the upcoming week. Her only hope was that Vegeta stood by his word and made it on time. Slowly, the heiress rotated her neck to crack it and relieve some stress, when someone roughly grabbed her shoulder from behind. Bulma shrieked in fright, before whirling around and finding herself face to face with Yamcha, who offered her a sheepish grin.

"What gives, Yamcha! I thought you might've been the androids!" Bulma yelled, making him laugh. He was carrying a six-month-old baby in one arm, a little boy with bright blue eyes and a black beanie cap on his head. The boy smiled at the sight of Bulma as Yamcha handed him over.

"You're about a week ahead of time, B. Besides, someone wanted their mom pretty bad."

"Well, who knows. Everything's changed so much since Trunks got here, maybe the date has changed too. Hey little guy!" Bulma brightly said once she caught her breath. She reached out and took the baby from Yamcha's arms, and then turned back to her laptop while she sat him securely on her lap. "Damn," she quietly said. "Maybe I should've told him he had to leave in 12 hours, or maybe 8-"

"You were talking to Vegeta?" Yamcha asked, his friendly tone gone now.

"Yamcha, seriously, don't start. He just needed to know how much time he had left. We still need him to show up, you know."

Yamcha shrugged with indifference, but his tone was icy as he said, "I don't see why. We're all been training hard for over three years now. Goku has already ascended, and he hasn't come down with whatever that weird virus was."

"Raditz and Vegeta helped with that."

"Well…alright, fine, but listen. Goku is all we really need. Remember, we didn't even have those two in Trunks' timeline to fight."

"Yeah, but still, Yamcha. We can use all the help we can get."

"Well, at least make sure that the connection is secure. Remember what happened the last time someone hacked into Vegeta's scouter two years ago? This whole planet was almost destroyed!" Yamcha snorted before mumbling, "Forget the androids, Vegeta's enemies are worse."

"I know," Bulma softly said, her eyes drifting back to the computer screen. Leaning down, she kissed her son gently on top of his head while the baby played with her headset.

"Hey, I have an idea," Yamcha brightly said. "How about we forget about Vegeta, about the androids, about all this doom and gloom and do something on our own? Just us. Let's go out to dinner, right now! What do you say?"

"That's all well and good, but what about the baby?"

"We'll bring him with us! It'll be great! Hang on, I'll go see if I can get us a reservation."

"Alright," Bulma said with a small laugh. "Maybe a day out would be good. Have to have a little fun before the next threat to the Earth, right kiddo? Okay, you can't tug on Mommy's headset. You're going to break it…"

Bulma pulled the headset away from her little boy's hands, setting it aside. The boy reached out, giving a cry of frustration that she had taken his new toy away. When he couldn't reach it with his small hands, Bulma felt a wiggling in her lap as a brown tail emerged. Before she could pull the headset further away, her son had already snatched it up with his tail. He laughed in delight as he got his toy back in his small hands.

"Man. I still have to get used to this extra limb of yours, kid," Bulma joked, looking her little boy over while he clumsily put the headset up to his ear, as though wanting to speak to his father. His tail was lashing happily by her leg, and she gently touched the soft fur.

He looked just like her son from the future, except for the presence of his tail. Vegeta had won the battle when it came to that, and Bulma had won the naming battle, which was no small feat. And she had also gotten a son she had once thought impossible. It still boggled her mind how her Trunks had come to be – he certainly hadn't been planned (in any timeline, she supposed), but she wouldn't change a thing. Even though Vegeta had never seen the boy, and had shown no desire to do so, she still wouldn't take anything back. Plus, she had hope that the prince would come around. After all, stranger things had happened over the last few years.

But for now, all that mattered was that they got past the androids. They had already dealt with a couple of new, dangerous threats over the last few years, most of which had developed directly because of Vegeta's powerful position in the universe. And now they were going to be challenged again. She just hoped her friends could alter history one more time, for the better, and change how things would play out at the hands of the androids. Trunks had given them that fighting chance.

And with Earth's group of special forces, one chance was all they ever needed.

**The End**


End file.
